Reality Bites
by Vision-X
Summary: A/U, Spoof, Round-Robin Self-Insertion Story: What happens when a team of fanfic authors crash-land in the Marvel Universe? Hang on to your socks, and fasten your safety belts...'Cause you're in for a RIDE! *Complete!*
1. Default Chapter

Title: Reality Bites  
Total Chapters: 33  
Rating: PG-13 for violence  
Summary: What happens when a team of fanfic authors crash-land in the Marvel Universe? Hang on to your socks, and fasten your safety belts...'Cause you're in for a RIDE!!!  
Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters copyright © Marvel Comics. Amanda, Arac, Anon, Athena, Cara, Hope, Jamar, Jonas, Leilee, Maria, Ryan, Sammi, Teb, Ymela, and other non-comic characters belong to the fanfic authors of this story. We are not making any money off of this Story.  
Notes: Welcome to the first installment of Reality Bites. This is a round robin story, written in the summer of 2000, on the Wolverine and Jubilee storyboard. It took the combined effort of many talented writers to create it. These talented authors are, in alphabetical order: A.C., Admiral, Jason_Barnett, Chaos, Dreamweaver, Maria_Cline, jubilee_79, Lady_Yann, Le Fae, Leilee, Rainfall, riverdreamer, snowbaby, and TEB.  
Warning: The story is long... But it sure is/was a fun ride. ;-) --Rainfall 

**Reality Bites--part 1**

She opened her eyes and was almost blinded by the light. The last thing she remembered was the car skidding out of control on her way home from the comic store. The last thought she remembered thinking was that she would never get to find out if Cyclops was dead. 

Slowly Amanda picked herself off the ground, carful to avoid further injury. As she glanced about to gain her bearings, her eyes did a double take at what they were observing. Instead of being on a deserted road, sh was stand in front of a huge Victorian looking mansion. Instead of it being pouring wet, it was a beautiful day. 

( I don't think I'm in L.A., thought Amanda) 

Strange or not she needed to find a phone somewhere. At twenty-three, she was still living with her mom. Part of the reason was that her mom still hadn't recovered from her dad's death last year. 

(She'll freak if I don't call), thought Amanda. 

"Well, any port in a storm." she stated out loud as she walked towards the mansion's door, " I'm sure these people would let me use the phone. I mean how strange can this place be." 

With this said she knocked on the door. At first there was no response, so she tried again. Still there was no response. Figuring that they were not home, Amanda was about to leave when the door opened. When Amanda glanced at the person behind the door, she felt herself starting to faint. Her last thought was that the claws looked smaller in the comics. 

**A.C.**

Amanda woke up in what looked to be the most spotless advanced hospital room she had ever seen. A large blue furred man was standing over her. She screamed rolled of the bed and pushed herself backwards sliding into the corner. Sounds that alternated between squeals of terror a simply heavy breathing escaped her throat. 

"Madre de Dias, McCoy you've got to stop doing that." A dark-skinned woman with dread locks approached her. "Easy miss, don't be frightened. Hank's just an overgrown Cookie Monster." 

"I heard a scream," a new voice stated. "Is the chick Wolvie gave the heart attack to awake?" 

"Indeed. I really wish you would refrain from opening the door in such a manner from now on." 

"Thought she was a solicitor. Ya gotta make an impression to keep 'em from comin' back." 

Amanda looked up to see a real Wolverine and someone she guessed was Jubilee from the blue eyes on an Asian and the wild fashion sense. 

She looked at Cece and Jubes first. "You all aren't supposed to be here." 

**Jason Barnett**

Jubilee turned to Wolverine and motioned her fingers in the universal crazy sign. Wolverine smiled slightly at Jubilee's gesture, but he keep his eyes on the girl. His keen senses telling him that the girl was truly afraid. He also notice that her fear was not based on the fact that they were mutants. In fact she seem more afraid that they existed, period. 

Cece tried to calm the young lady, " I know you are slightly confused. You have suffered a slight concussion..." 

"Oh thank Goodness! That's it! I must be dreaming. I'll wake up any moment." stated Amanda to herself. 

"My dear, I can assure you are quite conscious. You are just suffering from slight head trauma which was not helped by my friend's rather harsh greeting." informed Hank glaring at Wolverine. 

"I felt better when I thought I was dreaming." mumbled Amanda. 

"How ya ended up on our yard, kid?" questioned Wolverine. 

"I'm not a kid." answered Amanda with a smirk. ( I always wanted to say that), she thought. 

Jubilee could barely contain her laughter at Wolverine's expression. Other then herself, no one had the guts to talk to Wolvie liked that. This girl had real guts. Jubilee thought that she could hang with her. 

"My friend refers to many people like that. Please, do not take it too personal." Hank explained. 

Better play along until I can get home, she thought." Okay. How did I get here. Good question. I was wondering that myself. You..." 

Just then the alarms went off. As the X-men sprinted off, Amanda looked up to the sky. 

"Please don't let that be Magneto or Sinister.... I have to get home before I ended up getting killed." she shouted to the sky as She head out the door the X-men had just used. 

**A.C.**

Amanda ran to see a group of X-Men standing around some figure. "Another young confused girl!" Hank exclaimed as he glanced at Amanda. "Do you by any chance know her?" 

Amanda walked up to see a young woman about 20 years old. She had short brown hair and glasses. "No." she replied. 

"Oh my ---." the girl muttered as she stared out with a dazed expression. "This is the weirdest dream I ever had." 

"Dream?" Jubilee asked. 

"You guys look just like the X-Men." 

"We are the X-Men." Logan said as he stepped up to her. Like the other girl, she seemed scared but not at the fact that they are mutants. "What's yer name?" 

"M-Maria. Maria Cline. Am I at the X-Mansion?" 

"Maria!" Amanda exclaimed, "Do you participate in the Round Robins at the website? It's me, A.C. But you can call me Amanda." 

"A.C." Maria repeated. "Whoa, so, is this real?" 

"I guess." 

"What are you two doing here?" Jubilee asked. 

**Maria Cline**

Before Amanda or Maria could answer, another alarm went off. Then a strange thing happened. As the two of them watched, the faces of all the X-Men zoned out for a few seconds; as if they were hearing something the two girls could not. 

Amanda and Maria looked at each other, both with one explanation in their minds: The Professor! 

{What could he be saying to them?} wondered Amanda, worriedly. 

**********************************

~X-Men, report to the war room immediately, except for Dr. Reyes. Dr. Reyes, please escort our guests to Guest Quarters; they are not to leave.~ The Professor mentally instructed. He was in the war room already, and was looking at something on the computer screen; something which bothered him greatly. 

{This can't be,} He thought to himself. 

**********************************

"No time for explanations, Jubes. We better get goin'," said Wolverine, as he hustled Jubilee towards the door. 

"But, things were just getting interesting! Two strange girls ending up on our doorstep in one day?! If they're staying, can I interrogate them?" Jubilee said, her blue eyes twinkling mischievously. Wolverine only chuckled. 

****************************

One by one, the X-Men went back inside, except for Dr. Reyes. Maria and Amanda stared wide-eyed at each other, then at Dr. Reyes. Their eyes got wider still, as Dr. Reyes began to usher them wordlessly back into the mansion. 

{And just where in my job description does it mention anything about Babysitting?} Wondered Dr. Reyes to herself. 

**riverdreamer**

~Nightfall~ 

Amanda nervously paced up and down the narrow walk-way between the beds of the guestroom. No-one had been in to see them since Dr. Reyes brought them dinner, and Amanda couldn't help but wonder what was wrong. What had that alarm been for? 

She looked over at Maria, who was curled up fast asleep on one of the beds. Amanda was also tired, but her headache wouldn't allow her to sleep. She sighed to herself, and resumed pacing. 

******************************

Seventeen year old Cara had just gotten off of work, and was walking down main street to the nearest comic book store. She planned to buy the newest issue of "X-Men". As she rounded the corner however, her plans took an immediate detour; a bright flash of light lit up the sky, and the ground in front of her suddenly opened up. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" Cara screeched, as she pitched forward into the spiraling vortex, and the hole closed up after her.... 

*****************************************************

{Great. Now I know what it feels like to be sucked through a straw. As if I wanted to know that. Is this thing ever going to open up and let me out? I've been in it an awfully long time,} Cara wondered, as she was being pulled through the tunnel. Cara got her answer rather abruptly, as the vortex suddenly opened and spit her out, about NINE FEET off of the ground. "AACK!!!" she screeched, as she saw the ground rushing up at her; she was falling head first. Then her gymnast's nature took over. 

Cara quickly pulled her knees in and used her momentum to turn her in a right-side-up position; then, just as quickly pushed her legs out, meeting the ground feet first; did three back-hand springs across the lawn (lawn?!) and ended in a crouched position. 

She looked up at the vortex just as it disappeared in a blinding flash of light. "Ouch!" Cara muttered, as bright polka dots filled her eyes. She blinked rapidly to try and clear her vision. As it was clearing, she glanced up at the clear night sky, and gasped in shock. 

"It was clouded over before! And I'm sitting on grass instead of concrete! Where am I?" She wondered desperately. 

She looked frantically behind her; there was a huge mansion, and it looked rather dark and scarey at that moment. Cara wasn't about to go there, not for any reason. She turned her attention toward the tall brick wall that surrounded the property she was on. {I wonder if I can climb it?} She thought to herself, and she started to walk toward it. 

She had taken only about four steps, when suddenly..... 

"SNIKHT!" A sound like long knives being unsheathed stopped her dead in her tracks. "Hold it right there, bub!" said a low gravely voice, a few meters behind her. 

At about the same time, a beam of red light exploded against the brick wall, just to the left of Cara. 

"That was just a warning shot. Believe me. Now put your hands in the air and turn around. Nice and Slow," said another man, in a rather authoritative tone of voice. 

Cara raised her hands in the air, and slowly began to turn around in the direction of the two men. 

As she was turning, she was thinking to herself, {Could it be? No. That's impossible. It couldn't be. Could it? No, things like that don't happen to normal teenagers like me. Do they?!} 

By this time, Cara had turned around and was facing the men. One of them shone a bright light in her face. 

{Great. Just what I needed. More polka dots,} Cara thought miserably. 

She could just make out the silhouettes of the two men. The one holding the flashlight was tall, and the other man was short. 

{Well,} thought Cara, {let's just put the pieces to this puzzle together, shall we?} 

{First, the tall man is wearing some sort of visor. I'll assume that the authoritative voice and red laser blast came from him. That means the short guy standing next to him has the gravely voice with attitude, and the knives, or rather Claws, that go 'SNIKHT!'. Which can only mean one thing. Or perhaps two. Either I got hit by a car and am in a coma, or I really did travel across space and time, because I am facing none other than Cyclops and Wolverine of the X-MEN!!!} 

*********************************************************

Cyclops warily watched the girl. She seemed to be just a scared kid, but, was she really? How had she gotten on the property, or past all of the security defenses? There was more to this girl than that which met the eye. 

"Who are you, What are you doing here, and HOW did you get here?" Cyclops demanded of the girl. 

Cara knew that Cyclops was just questioning her, because she had appeared out of nowhere; that, for all he knew, she could be dangerous. She also knew if she stepped wrong, or pissed these guys off, they could blast her to kingdom come. She knew all this, and normally would be a bit more cooperative; after all, she was trespassing, and they did deserve an explanation. But circumstances being what they were, her reply was thus..... 

"Well, for starters, my name wouldn't mean anything to you. As for what I'm doing here, I have no idea. And how I got here, you probably wouldn't believe me if I told you," Cara snapped. 

She knew snapping at them was a stupid thing to do; But she had just been through a rather traumatic experience, what with being whisked off probably billions of light-years away from home and family. She didn't know if she would ever see them again. She was alone in a strange world, and very scared; something that Cara really didn't like being. The last straw was the tone of voice Cyclops was using. As soon as she got home, if she got home, she was going to take that poster of him off her wall and rip it to shreds. She really didn't like that tone of voice. 

"Watch it, kid!" growled Wolverine. 

He sniffed the air, and could smell the various emotions that were emanating from the girl. Fear, confusion, anger and worry were at the top of the list. But there was something else that he smelled as well. He couldn't quite place it, but it was something out of the ordinary. Wolverine started walking toward the girl. 

Cara's eyes grew huge and round as she saw Wolverine advance. Her feet were rooted to the ground, and even if she could run, she had no place to go. 

{Great! Just Great!} Cara thought wildly. {Now I've gone and done it! He's going to kill me! This is really, really bad! What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?} 

"EEP!" yelped Cara, as she found herself eye to eye with Wolverine. 

Wolverine's eyes flickered in slight amusement. He'd heard some strange sounds from people before, but EEP!? Wolverine got back to business, and began to sniff the air around the girl's face. He soon picked up a faint trace of ozone. It was the kind that clung to inter-dimensional travelers, like Bishop and Longshot. 

{That answers HOW she got here,} Wolverine thought. 

Up until this point, Cara thought that she had been handling her situation rather well. At least, until Wolverine began to sniff at her face. Hysteria mounting, Cara did what any other person would do in her position. She collapsed on the ground in a fit of hysterical laughter. 

Cyclops and Wolverine just stared. Was this girl crazy? 

~Cyclops, Wolverine. Bring the girl and report to the war room. Immediately.~ The Professor telepathically ordered them. 

~Yes, Professor,~ Cyclops and Wolverine answered the Professor on the mind link. 

They stared again at the now silent girl, who was sitting on the lawn, and staring solemnly back at them. 

Cara had fallen silent when she felt a strange, tickling sensation in the back of her mind. {Was that the Professor?} she wondered. She was convinced that it had been when she saw the look on Wolverine and Cyclops's faces. 

Wolverine held out his hand to the strange girl. She took it, and he pulled her to her feet. 

"You'll have to come with us, Miss," said Cyclops. 

"Ulp! You're taking me to your leader?" Cara nervously asked. 

{Great. Did I really just say something so stupid?} Cara thought, as she felt her face turn several rather amazing shades of red. 

"Something like that," answered Cyclops, his lips beginning to twitch. 

******************************

Maria woke up with a start when she heard someone begin to open the door. She quickly put her glasses back on, and nervously ran her fingers through her short, brown hair. 

Amanda had been staring out the window, but turned around to face the door as it opened. It was Dr. Reyes. 

"I hope you've had a good rest," she said in her most professional tone of voice. "There is someone who wishes to speak with you. If you will please follow me." 

She held the door open, waiting for them to step through. Maria and Amanda walked out, and followed her down the long, broad hallway. 

{This place is a lot bigger than in the comics,} thought Maria. 

**Rainfall**

Maria and Amanda followed the doctor through the hallways. Maria couldn't help but marvel at the various technologies around the place. "Wow." 

They entered a room with a circular table like the meeting room of King Arthur and the knights. 

Amanda and Maria glanced at the various X-Men. There was Wolverine, Psylocke, Angel, Jubilee, Phoenix, and... Cyclops. 

"OH MY ---!!!" Maria exclaimed, "CYCLOPS?!" 

Scott looked at the young girl with confusion. Her face had gotten pale as her eyes seemed to bulge out. "Yes?" 

"Oh ---." 

"What?" Amanda asked. Maria gave her the 'you know'. "Oh." Amanda said as she nodded as well. The two looked at Scott with confusion. 

"Excuse me?" another voice asked. 

Maria and Amanda looked to their right to see a bald man in a wheelchair. "Professor Xavier?" Maria asked in a nice tone. 

"Yes. You heard of me?" Xavier asked. 

{Wow, he does look like Patrick Stewart.} Maria thought. 

"Who are you?" another person asked. Maria and Amanda glanced to see another girl standing there confused. 

"I'm Amanda and this is Maria." Amanda said. 

"Hi." 

"*Ahem*" Xavier said to get the girl's attention. "It seems to me that all of you are confused. I am having a hard time reading your thoughts due to your confusion. Where are you from?" 

"Indiana." Maria replied. "Er... ah..." At that moment, Maria's stage fright took hold and she wanted to vanish. Suddenly, she faded away. 

"Maria!" Amanda exclaimed. 

"What?" Maria's voice asked confused. 

**Maria Cline**

==========Outside==========

/That hurt.../ A man also about 20, pushed himself off the ground... 

Looking up in to the treetops from where he had come falling down only second's ago. 

Whipping the dirt off his blue jeans and brown jacket, and picked up his black School bag that had decided to tag along. 

/When did I end up in a forest... where is the train station?/ he shook his head, dizzy. 

/Might as well try and find a way out./ he didn't get very far, but was stopped by a man in a trench coat, holding a long metal stick, Smiling wide. 

"Vem e du." (who are you? *Swedish*) He quickly asked the new figure, backing away slightly. 

====

Gambit looked at the young man looking to be about 1,85 meters, brown short hair, Rogue landed behind him grabbing his hands. 

To all of their surprise, the young man not only panicked, but easily threw Rouge away... 

Seeing that he was just as confused as the rest of them, Rogue stood up. 

"You speak English. What is your name?" 

The man looked up suddenly realized who he was looking at... "Jonas... Jonas Ljungberg..." he fainted. 

**Admiral**

**********In the Mansion**********

Suddenly, Leilee heard a door slide open. She jumped up and prepared to face whoever was coming out. Nobody. She inched closer, to see why the door opened, and was suddenly yanked in by one blue gloved hand. 

"Let me go, you creep!" she shouted, kicking against his shins. 

He set her on her feet, only to extend one claw to the side of her face. A tall man with brown hair and red glasses stood next to him. "Who are you?" 

"Where the H*ll am I?" 

The clawed man pressed his claw a little closer. "Answer the question." 

"Bite me, Barky." 

Wolverine stepped up and growled at her. She growled right back at him. Suddenly the two were flung apart telekinetically. 

"Break it up, you two," The redhead said, shaking her head. "Could you please answer the question, Miss?" 

Leilee turned to glower at her and turned away. "Fine. I'm Leilee. I'm from S. Philly." 

Professor Xavier looked at her. "How did you get here?" 

Leilee shrugged. "No clue. Now. I know who you all are. But," she said as she turned to the other girls, "Who are you?" 

**Leilee**

"I'm Amanda. This is Maria, and Cara." Amanda said, as she introduced herself and the others to the new arrival. 

Just then, the door of the war room slid open, and in walked Rogue, with Gambit not far behind. Rogue was carrying a man that none of the girls had seen before; the girls exchanged glances. 

{He must be one of US,} thought Cara. 

"Who's the new guy?" Wolverine asked the Cajun. 

"Says his name is Jonas, mon ami," answered Gambit as he lounged against the wall, and twirled a card between his fingers. 

"Ah had just a little trouble with this one, Professor. He seems to be about as strong as Ah am!" Rogue said. 

She set the man down in a chair; he was beginning to come round. 

{Could these five be the key to what's happening?} wondered the Professor to himself. 

He glanced again at the computer, his brow furrowed at the readings. 

**Rainfall**

"Look like it's not only girl's falling in on us." Gambit said and helped the new guy sit up. 

"Another one?" Rogue pointed at Leilee. 

"Yes... and I have a name." Leilee said whit a frown. 

Jonas lifted a finger and was about to say something... but cut himself off and placed his head in his hands. 

Cara, Leilee and Amanda looked at each other forgetting for a moment about Maria who was again invisible. 

"Eh, would someone please explain to me why I'm here? I mean there have to be a reason why." Jonas stood up throwing out his arms lightly... hitting something. 

Maria was sent flying in to the far wall... "Hey, what the hell are you doing... are you crazy?" 

Jonas jumped as a voice came out of thin air, knowing he had hit something. 

"Eh. Sorry... who are you... or more correctly where are you?" Jonas said, afraid that he had hurt some one... somehow he was stronger... much stronger. 

Xavier started to talk. "It would seem that there is some sort of dimensional rift, I can not pinpoint the exact location, however the signal seem familiar somehow." 

He turned to the new arrivals. "Somehow... and for some reason you have been pulled out of your world and in to this..." he paused... 

"And the rift is not closing..." Jean looked at Xavier, concerned. 

"So we might expect more people to drop in on us? But why here, why these particular people?" 

Xavier looked concerned, "I'm not sure, but from what I have gathered from the information... the rift is..." he looked sadly at the new people, now standing side by side. 

"...One way... I can't see that there is a way back." 

Leilee frowned. "Great... just GREAT..." 

Maria waved her hand, not that any one saw her... "Excuse me... but why can't you see me?" 

**Admiral**

Amanda had stood quietly be through most of this. She had made a few introductions, but had pretty much stayed out of this. She was concern about Xavier's reaction. Something was happening that he wasn't tell them about. Being a long time Xavier fan, Amanda knew she could read him like a book. Maybe she should show him that they weren't so out of the loop. 

" I think it is time for a few confessions." Stated Amanda in her best Cyclops impression. 

All of the X-men turn towards her. The others did as well, but they had a good idea about what she was going to say. 

" You see," she explained," all of us ( indicating to the stranded authors) are from a dimension where you guys are nothing but top rating comic book characters." 

The X-men started at the girl with expressions that mirrored disbelief, confusion, and laughter. 

(They think I'm nuts, Amanda thought, I'll show them) 

Maria, who was still trying to figure out how she got invisible, began to smile. She was a little sick of some of the rudeness. It wasn't as if they had all decided to plan a visit. They were the ones who were lost. 

"So I see you don't believe us," continue Amanda," so I guess all of us get to play name all the X-men deepest secrets. Anyone want to start?" 

**A.C.**

Leilee grinned evilly. "Oooh! Me first. When the Marvel universe and the DC universe fought each other, Jubilee 1)Kissed Robin before the fight began in the balloon warehouse. 2) He kicked her butt without hitting her ONCE, 3)They made out in Gondola in Venice, 4)She convinced Access to take her back to the DC universe just so she could see him, 5)He dumped her 6)They beat the crap out of Two Face, and 7) they got attacked by the Scorpion, With Jubilee nearly getting skewered by his tail." 

Everyone stared at her in shock. she shrugged. "I'm a Jubilee fan. She's an awesome character. But this is the truth. RIGHT, Jubilee?" 

Jubilee blushed. "Yes. I did. But the fighting wasn't that bad." 

At those words, Wolverine freaked out. "I'll kill him!" 

Leilee snapped her fingers, effectively muting him "Ok. Who's next?" 

**Leilee**

Maria reappeared and replied, "Okay, I got something. Scott, you were married once before to a woman named Madelyn Pryor, with whom you had a son named Nathan; who you called Christopher at the time, because you hated the name 'Nathan'. Oh, Nathan did know about the truth behind 'Slymm' and 'Redd' before you told him, at the time when Legion tried to tinker with the past." Maria paused and added, "Oh, and Scott once threatened to hit Gambit with a truck; no, a really big truck if he ever had the opportunity to kiss Jean." 

"How?" Scott asked. 

Maria replied, "Oh, I'm a Cyke fan. I can also name the various Summers... Cyclops, Phoenix, Rachel, Alex, Corsair, Katherine... Tyler Dayspring, Hepethath is one by marriage--she's married to your father, umm... Franklin in a possible future, and Gambit and Adam X are possible Summers brothers candidates. Next?" 

**Maria Cline**

"Oh, and I forgot Cable." Maria said as she smacked her head. She became invisible again. 

"Hmmm... perhaps, this girl is a mutant." Hank said. 

"Well, people do ignore me once in a while." Maria said. "Oh and Gambit is in a distant way responsible for Sinister being able to shapeshift. Is Courier female or male at this time?" 

**Maria Cline**

"Oh, let's not forget the others folks." sneered Amanda, who was enjoying the X-men squirming. 

(This is what they get for wasting valuable comic space, whining about their powers) she thought. 

"Let see who should we rat out next: Rogue, Warren, Xavier, or Wolverine? Let's leave Xavier for last. Does anyone want to go?" she questioned her fellow authors. They all raised their hands. 

As the next one was about to speak, Amanda sent a telepathic message to Xavier. (I know you can here this. I'm you biggest fan and I know you're hiding something. I want to know what, NOW.) 

**A.C.**

Leilee laughed. "I got Wolverine. Don't get me started on your list. Like how you did the nasty with Mystique." 

Everyone made a face. "Ew....." 

"And then there's the whole thing about how Sabretooth is really your son or your father....guess that's why you haven't killed him yet," she said with a wink. "Oh, and just so you know, It's all your guys fault that Jubilee's a straight C student. Anyone with common sense would know you don't compare a child who has gone through severe emotional trauma to someone who is perceived as perfection. But then again, this IS the X-men we're talking about... She used to have straight A's, you know." 

The X-men all turned to look at Jubilee. She shrugged. 

"Oh! before I forget. Logan, Jubilee was very impressed with your....package," Leilee giggled. 

**Leilee**

Jubilee's jaw dropped, and her face turned white as a sheet. Then her eyes narrowed in to small slits... 

"How dare you speak about me like that!" Jubilee stammered angrily. 

Static charges from her pyrotechnics began to swirl around her hands, as she crouched down into a fighting stance. 

"Just for that, I'm gonna PAF ya to kingdom come!" She shouted, as she glared at Leilee. 

Wolverine had been in a state of shock, but he snapped out of it. "SNIKHT!" went all six of his claws. 

"You'll have to wait in line, darlin'," he said to Jubilee, as he prepared to take Leilee down. 

Leilee smiled. She'd always wanted to do this. "Let's GO!" she said to Wolverine. 

Before they could fight, however, they were interrupted by a nervous voice coming from the corner of the room. 

"Uh, guys?" Cara nervously said, as she looked down at the chair she had been holding. It had begun to glow... 

Gambit looked stunned. He knew that glow all to well... 

"Everyone! Out of the war room! Now!!!" He shouted to the others. There were only a matter of moments before it would blow. 

Phoenix knew there wouldn't be time to get everyone out. She quickly telekinetically pushed Cara out of the way, then raised her Psi shield around the chair...Just in time. 

She gasped as her psi shield absorbed the sudden concussive blast, and then, passed out. 

Cyclops gently carried Jean over to a chair, and put her in it. 

Everyone was looking at Cara, the fight momentarily forgotten. 

"Um, Cara? What color are your eyes supposed to be?" asked Maria. She was visible once again. 

"Green," said Cara, stunned at the question. 

{What does she mean, "supposed to be"?} she thought to herself. 

"Well, they're not green now," said Leilee, a small smirk on her face. 

"What?!!!" said the confused girl. 

She walked over to the computer console, which had a mirror-like surface, and looked at her reflection. She seemed normal enough, but her eyes were glowing red. 

"EEP!" yelped Cara. 

**Rainfall**

Jonas had been quiet for a long time; the situation was starting to get out of hand...and he still had no idea how the hell he got here. 

He saw that the girl Leilee was likely to get diced by Logan if she was going to keep this up, she was eyeing Logan again...the bad way. 

"Enough of this crap..." Jonas grabbed Leilee by the wrist, (to grab Logan would be too risky) and held her a bit off the floor. 

She really wanted out of his grip, he noted. 

"First, you girls obviously all seem to know each other... have you got any idea why we are here?" Jonas sounded serious... and irritated. 

"Who made you boss?" Leilee snarled and tried to squirm out from his grip. 

"I'm not, she obviously got top position." He nodded to Amanda. "But we have to get down to earth with the situation... or where ever we are." 

Amanda looked shocked, she was boss? Suddenly she felt a psi transition from Xavier to the rest of the x-men. 

"I would like to be able to get home, not get in to a fight with the..." 

Amanda's telepathic voice sounded in his head and cut him off. ~They are going to try and take us out.~ 

Jonas saw that most of the X-Men took up positions. /This is not good.../ 

Cyclops was aiming to take out the leader quick...and decided to fire a low intensity blast at Amanda to knock her out. 

Jonas threw Leilee away...and jumped in front of Amanda instinctively just as Scott fired... /What am I doing... THROWING MYSELF IN FRONT OF CYCLOPS BEAM!?!/ 

The beam hit, but had no effect, he barely felt it, he stood still for a moment, had he missed? 

The next hit was more powerful, and Jonas jerked forward slightly as the beam hit him again. /THAT I felt./ he thought. 

"OK, that's it, if you guy's don't wanna play nice." Jonas ran at the x-man that was closest. 

Leilee was already heading for Wolverine... 

"Not good!" Cara, Amanda and an invisible Maria said in one voice... 

**Admiral**

Cara was normally a peacemaker. She didn't fight very much (even though she could), and instead would usually try to talk her way out of situations like these. 

{But, then again, I've never really been in a situation quite like this,} she thought to herself. 

She wondered if there was anything she could possibly do to diffuse the situation, before any real damage was done; at least, she did until she caught a blast from Jubilee. 

Cara was knocked against the far wall of the room, and slid to the ground as her world erupted in a blinding flash of red pain. She shook her head to clear her vision, and felt the back of her head. There was a lump beginning to form, and she could feel a little blood on her hand. 

Her eyes narrowed in cold anger, and she bared her teeth in a menacing smile. Slowly, she raised herself off of the floor, and looked up to meet the icy blue gaze of Jubilee. 

"You wanna fight, sister?" she asked Jubilee, as her red eyes glowed dangerously. "'Cause, girl, you just got one!" 

With that, Cara launched herself at Jubilee... 

**Rainfall**

Maria isn't a fighter. But she couldn't bear to watch her fellow fans get clobbered by X-Men. She ran up to Storm and hit her. 

Ororo returned with a well placed kick at the invisible woman. Maria was flung to the floor and that was when she got mad. She became visible again and her body tensed. 

"STOP IT RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!" Maria yelled out. 

All of the glass shattered and the fighting people stopped and put their hands on their heads in pain. Maria clasped her hands over her mouth and became invisible. 

There was a meek voice. "Did I do that?" 

**Maria Cline**

Jonas stopped the pounding he had going on with Rogue, only to realize that they were both flying... 

"Ah guess we should stop." Rogue said looking at her opponent that seemed to have similar powers as herself, maybe stronger, but she was way more agile then him. 

"Your choice... you people started this." Jonas said and pushed her away from him, still floating in mid air. 

"Well maybe we should start this from the top." Amanda said as she cleared her head from Maria's sonic scream. 

"Good idea bub, no more screaming if yer happy with that face." Logan said, obviously in pain. 

"Will you two stop." Jonas drifted down to the only two people still fighting; Cara and Jubilee. 

Grabbing them by the collars, separating them and holding them in mid air. 

"Let me go you... you..." Jonas handed Jubilee who was kicking wildly at him to Logan. 

Settling his feet on the floor... surprised how quickly he was settling in whit the sudden superpower. 

Standing he suddenly realized that he was still holding Cara two feet off the floor. 

"You can let go now." Cara said eyeing him angry. 

**Admiral**

Jonas gently set Cara on the floor, an apologetic smile on his lips. 

"Thanks," Cara muttered, as she shrugged out of his grasp. 

She turned and stalked off to a corner of the room, still eyeing Jubilee warily. 

Xavier thoughtfully eyed the inhabitants of the war room; scanning the faces of the two groups. Then he turned his eyes to look at the war room itself. The destruction from the fighting was immense; Broken glass and furniture littered the once pristine room. 

He cleared his throat and prepared to address the lot of them. 

"Ahem. Perhaps we should continue this meeting in another room? Preferably one where the computer hasn't been destroyed?" he said, glancing at Maria, who was visible. 

"Oops!" Maria squeaked in a tiny voice, as she blushed and faded again. 

**Rainfall**

As they walked down the hall, Jubilee glared at her. "Why do you have to be such a bitch?" 

Leilee rolled her eyes. "Ok. I got in a fight at school with my best friend, I just got told I didn't get the solo I wanted for my dance class, I got mugged at knife point on my way home, had to run after him and beat the crap out of him to get my money back, and then I get suddenly transported here, I fall on and hurt my butt, and the HAIRBALL you call Wolvie threatened to kill me. I think I have every RIGHT to be bitchy! Plus, I'm beginning to feel sick. I think I'm gonna...." Suddenly she turned slightly and puked in Professor X's lap. "Oops....Sorry. If it's any consolation, I feel better now...." 

**Leilee**

"Ewww... gross!" Maria said as she hid her invisible eyes. 

Xavier turned green as he said, "I'm going to get cleaned up." Scott went with the professor as they went to his room. 

"I'm sorry about what happened to you." Maria said as she tried to reappear again. 

"Yeah well. I would like it if you didn't vanish like that." 

Maria reappeared and she said, "Well, I was at home when this happened. My family must be worried sick about me by now." 

The group went to the med lab and Hank said, "It appears that all of you have gained some mutant powers. We will need to do some tests. If that is okay." 

**Maria Cline**

Jonas backed off. "Test? As in medical test?" 

Hank looked puzzled. "Yes, blood work And..." 

Jonas cut him of quickly. "NO WAY, stay away from me..." he yelled out as he saw Reyes prepare to take a blood sample. 

/I'm freaking out.../ suddenly the room cramped in on him... the disinfectant smell filled his nose and it was way to crowded... the white robe that Hank was wearing was not helping. 

"I assure you, Jonas, that this will only take a moment, and you will barley feel a thing." Hank said putting on a big grin... Bad move. 

**Admiral**


	2. Reality Bites-Part 2

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. We are not making any money off of this story. 

**Reality Bites--part 2**

Cara sat in a chair on one side of the room. She was bracing her forehead in the palm of one hand, and was holding an ice pack to the back of her head with the other. 

{I hope this isn't going to need stitches,} she thought to herself. She absolutely HATED needles... 

Hank and Cece took another couple of steps toward Jonas; they both had on their professional, patronizing, this-isn't-going-to-hurt-a-bit smiles...and Cece was holding a needle. 

Jonas eyed the needle warily.../Nope, no way. They're not getting a single drop of my blood!!!/ He thought, as he backed away two more steps. 

Dr. Reyes and Dr. McCoy both glanced at each other. They could see that this wasn't going to be easy. They would have to try an alternate plan. 

"Now!" cried Cece to Hank. 

Hank quickly moved around to intercept Jonas, trying to pin him down long enough for Cece to get the blood sample. 

Cece grabbed Jonas's right arm, and tried to force the needle to penetrate his skin...BIG, BIG MISTAKE! 

Jonas grabbed the two doctors by their wrists, and flung them easily away from him and across the room, as if they were nothing but rag-dolls. 

Amanda leapt to one side, as Beast came barreling towards her, narrowly missing her. He ended up, rather harmlessly, bouncing off of the wall...at least, it was rather harmless for the wall; there really wasn't THAT big of a dent... 

Cara looked up, just in time to see Dr. Reyes hurtling towards her. Her eyes grew wide as she tried to move out of the way...but she wasn't quick enough. Dr. Reyes crashed into her, still holding the rather unwelcome needle...which she accidently plunged into Cara's shoulder. 

"OUCH!!!" Cara screeched, and her eyes were huge and round as she stared at the needle imbedded in her. 

She shoved Dr. Reyes off of her and tried to hit her...but the punch bounced harmlessly off of Dr. Reyes' bio shield, and straight into the wall. 

**Rainfall**

Just as another fight was about to break out, everyone heard a crackling noise that seemed to be coming from the ceiling. They all looked up to see a bright hole appearing. 

" I know that hole! Everyone move!!!!!!" shouted Cara. 

Just then a figure fell out of the ceiling and landed on Beast. 

"Noooooooo!" the figure said as she now looked where she just came from. Then her hand brushed something and she slowly looked down. *Blue carpet?* She thought, then it moved. 

"What the ...? Someone, Please, wake me up, NNNNNNOOOOWWWWW!!!!" 

"My dear if you would please get off of me." Beast asked. 

The girl scrambled off of the now talking blue carpet. 

She stared with wide eyes as she saw who she landed on. 

"I landed on Big Blue? This can not be happening. I'm dead right? This is a dream?" She said asking around the room as she did she saw three girls and a guy and Cecilia Reyes! 

"I got it; I'm in OZ. Someone wake me when we get to the Wizard." And with that she passed out. 

**jubilee_79**

Beast picked the girl up that just passed out after she fell on him. He carried her over to one of the tables and said, " Why don't you four sit over there while I check on the newest visitor." 

Amanda, Maria, Cara, Leilee and Jonas all moved over to the farthest side of the med lab, and sat down in the chairs. 

"At least she bought me some time." Jonas said in a low voice. 

At the table, Beast and Cece looked at the girl; she looked about 20 years old, with really long black hair that had a blue streak in the front. Cece decided it would be easier if she got the blood now, rather than later. Hank was taking her vitals and when Cece was done he got out the smelling salts and waved them under her nose. She swatted his hand out of the way before he even got close to her. 

"I'm up you don't have to pull out the big guns, mom." Then she opened her eyes. "Oh my #$%!!!!!" 

Telling that she was about to panic Amanda got up and slowly walked over to her telepathically saying," It's alright; we are here just like you. Don't freak. Please, Don't freak." 

The girl stared at Amanda for a moment and said, "You're a telepath? How can you be like me?" 

"Why don't we start with the easy questions first. What's your name? Where are you from?" Amanda asked, able to tell the girl was calming down. 

"My name is Samantha. Everyone calls me Sam, But if I'm where I think I am that could get confusing, huh? Just call me Sammi. I'm from San Francisco. I guess I'm in Westchester, New York, right? Someone else talk before I start babbling I do that when I get nervous and being that I'm looking two of the X-Men. I'm starting to get nervous." Sammi said. 

"Starting... it seems as if you're already there." Jonas said. 

**Jubilee_79**

Cara looked down at the hypodermic needle she was holding; It was full of her blood. She had pulled it out of her shoulder, moments after Sammi joined their little group. 

"I'll take that, thank you!" said Dr. Reyes, walking over to Cara and holding out her hand for the needle. 

Wordlessly, Cara handed it over to Dr. Reyes, and then placed her forehead in her own hands. 

"Well, that's another one down," Cece said with a small smile, walking back to Hank. 

"Yes. Only four more to go," Hank said, eyeing the rest of the group. 

Jonas shuddered... 

Cara's right hand ached from crashing into the wall (after it bounced off of Cece's bio shield), her left shoulder ached from the needle, her whole body ached from Dr. Reyes crashing into her (the bio shield had protected Dr. Reyes, for the most part),and her head ached from making contact with the wall earlier. 

{I am NOT having a good day!} she mournfully thought to herself. 

**Rainfall**

Amanda said calmly, "We just got here ourselves. You better calm down because we gained powers after coming here." 

"Powers?" Sammi asked, "Like your telepathy?" 

"Yeah. Cara can blow things up, I'm a telepath, Jonas has super-strength, Leilee, I don't know, and Maria... Maria?" 

"Right here." Maria said as she reappeared again. 

Sammi fell over in shock and asked, "Let me guess, invisibility." 

"And a super-strong shout." Maria added she looked over at Xavier who was wearing different clothes. "Sorry about the war room." 

Hank went up to the young girl and asked, "Your blood?" 

Maria sighed as she closed her eyes and held out her hand. "Just hurry it up." 

After Hank was done, he said, "I'll go ahead and start testing the blood we have already. Dr. Reyes, could you please take the rest of the samples?" 

**Maria Cline**

Jonas cleared his throat... 

"Excuse me, but you girls all seem to have a better idea about what's going on than I do...and you seem to know each other. Could you please tell me from where? And how did we all get here?" he asked as politely as he could. 

He warily watched Dr. Reyes, as she took a blood sample from Amanda. She was watching him just as warily. 

Cara looked up at him, her glowing red eyes wide with surprise. 

"You mean you don't know? We're all authors from the Wolverine and Jubilee round robin!" she said. 

"And the Professor said that we arrived here through an inter-dimensional rift," said Maria, reappearing again. 

"He also said that the rift wasn't closing, and that it was one way," finished Leilee. 

**Rainfall**

"What do you mean its ONE WAY!!!!" Sammi screamed. 

Everyone flinched. "Well, you don't have Maria's scream but you do have a set of lungs, don't ya?" Cara said. 

"Sorry. If you all got powers I wonder if I do to? As long as I'm not like popsicle, I'm fine." 

"Hay, I resemble that remark." Bobby said as he walked into the med lab. "Another one? If this keeps up we're going to have a new team." 

"O.K. Bobby is here. Beast, Dr. Reyes, and the professor. Where's Mary Ann and Ginger?" Sammi said looking at Bobby for a laugh. 

"I like it. Hay, wait a minute. Who's Gilligan?" He said walking over to Sammi. 

"Duh, you are. Anyway, Who else is here?" She asked the others. 

"Well, Wolverine, Jubilee, Storm, Rogue, Jean, Warren, Betsy, and, well, Scott are the ones we saw today." Leilee said. 

"Scott!?! I thought.." Sammi started then she saw Amanda, Cara, and Maria start shaking their heads. "I'll just drop that. Do we have rooms or do I have to sleep in the med lab? I'm starting to get light headed." 

"Sure. Why don't you all go and lie down while we run the tests on your blood samples." Beast said. 

"Blood samples. Please tell me you already took mine." Sammi said. 

"Yes, Samantha, we took your sample while you were passed out. You all go. Except for you, Jonas, you still have to give." Beast answered looking at Jonas, who was sitting in the corner shaking his head. "No. No. Not me. I'm fine really." 

Everyone started leaving but Sammi didn't move. She knew about fear, especially of needles. 

"Are you coming, Sammi?" Asked Cece. 

"I'll be along in a moment. I want to try some thing." She said slowly walking over to Jonas. 

"I would be careful if I were you, Samantha. He has super strength and could really hurt you." Hank said watching Sammi walk over to Jonas. 

"It's O.K. I know what I'm doing." She said to Hank and then to Jonas," I don't like needles either but I know a way to handle your fear. You want to know what it is?" 

" Sure, I guess." Jonas said cautiously. 

" O.K. It's a little dumb. Look at my eyes and follow them." She said. 

Sammi and Jonas locked eyes and she slowly gestured to Hank to move slowly around the side. 

Jonas started looking at Hank and Back at Sammi. 

" Keep looking at me, Jonas." He left his eyes on Sammi. Then all of a sudden She said, "Now!" And she flashed Jonas. Hank got the sample while he was stunned. 

**jubilee_79**

Everyone froze at Sammi's action. Most out of embarrassment. Bobby and the other girls were just dying of laughter. Xavier's face was turning white, while Amanda just stared at him. After the shock wore off, Xavier noticed Amanda's stare. 

" Yes?" he questioned. 

" Well, I was thinking of apologizing, but then I remembered some of the stunts that you guys have pulled and decide against." she stated. 

In his mind Xavier heard her voiced state ( Don't tell me that Bobby hasn't pulled off stunts as crazy as that.) 

( Bobby doesn't have the body for that particular stunt) 

( Why Xavier! I do believe that was a joke you just made.) 

( I am capable of making them when the situation warrants one.) 

( And here I thought you were boring. I guess I'll have to rethink who my favorite is again.) 

( I would love to here who is on your list, but we need to find out how you got here and how to get you home. So could you please control your team?) 

( Spoil sport! All right I'll control mine if you control yours) 

(Then we are both facing a difficult challenge, my dear.) 

( Wow! Two jokes in one outing and we just started. I really must change my favorites list...you 're far more interesting then Wolverine, Gambit, or Magneto.) 

Xavier started to laugh out loud which shocked not only the small group of travelers, but the X-men as well. The shock turn to puzzlement when Amanda join in. 

**A.C**

"There you go my friend..." Hank was cut short as Jonas grabbed him by the neck easily lifting him of the floor. "I TOLD YOU NO TEST." 

Rogue Grabbed him from behind but his grip was like a rock. "Hey Sugar, let him get some air will ya." 

Sammi grabbed his other hand. "Let him go your killing him." 

Jonas dragged his eyes from Hank who was trying to break the grip, to no use. 

Looking at Sammi Jonas let go of Hank throwing him against the wall. "Try that again blue, I break your neck..." he glanced at Sammi. "That goes for you too." 

Sammi backed of two steps, this guy was mad... 

Reyes walked to Hank and helped him to his feet. 

Everyone looked at the rather angry Jonas. 

"Someone got a problem?" Jonas yelled out, he wanted to break something... or someone. 

"Calm down Please, we only want to get to the bottom of this." Xavier said as he realized that the new arrivals had manage to damage the Medlab too. 

Jonas frowned trying to remain angry... but he was calming down, anger fading as quick as it had come. 

"Please show our guests to their rooms." Xavier sighed. 

**Admiral**

Maria lay down in one of the many spare bedrooms which she shared with Amanda. "Amanda?" 

"Yeah?" 

"I've been thinking. Why are we here?" 

"I've been wondering that all my life." Amanda replied. 

"No, I mean in this world. This isn't like the comics. I mean, Cyclops and Phoenix are here and they aren't supposed to be here. We could be in some weird alternate comic book universe." 

"I know. We both know that Scott is you know what in the comics now. Do you suppose that Logan is...?" 

"Maybe." Maria's eyes went hazy as she said, "Maybe, we're here to battle Apocalypse or something. Why did we have these weird powers in the first place?" 

"Apocalypse? It kinda makes sense, we do know what happened in the comics and we know a lot about the characters." 

Maria frowned as she asked, "Do you think we should tell them more about what we know? I mean about The Twelve? Or even about Alex?" 

"We might be wrong. Things aren't really like in the comics. For all we know, we could be completely wrong." 

"I just have to tell Scott about his brother or maybe brothers." Maria said as she lay on her stomach, "Say, maybe a super-villain wants us. You know, if Magneto knows about his fate or Sinister knows what we know, they could do a lot of harm." 

"Maybe. Or a god or a celestial did this." 

Maria and Amanda remained silent. Finally Maria said, "We could talk to the others in private about what we should do." 

**Maria Cline**

Professor Xavier led Jonas down the hall to a room with the door closed. He knocked. No answer. 

That's when Jonas asked, " Are we sharing rooms?" 

"Yes. Its seems a little strange but we thought that being you are all from the same dimension, I thought it would help." The prof said as he knocked again. 

This time there was an answer. "Yah, what do you want?" the voice said. It was a girl. 

"I'm sharing with a girl?" Jonas asked. 

" Sorry, as of now you are the only male to 'drop in'." The prof said. 

/Please, PLEASE don't let it be Sammi.../ Jonas thought. 

"I brought your room mate. Can you unlock the door?" The prof said trying not to let it show that he heard Jonas' request. 

The door opened to show a girl in a bathrobe with her hair in a towel like turban, not just any girl, it was Sammi. "I'm rooming with HIM!?!" 

"NO! Not her! anyone but her!!!!" Jonas said. 

"Sorry, being that you two are the newest and the others have already been assigned rooms. You two will just have to find a way to be civil." And with that the professor left two very upset young human/mutant? travelers. 

**jubilee_79**

/Great I end up in the marvel universe with 5 girls, I somehow get super powers, I slug it out in the war room with Rogue./ 

Looking over at Sammi. /I end up getting fooled in to taking a blood test by one of the girls... almost kill Beast, I'm crazy./ 

~Sigh~ Jonas fell heavy back on to the bed... /Hmm, soft./ He noted. 

Suddenly he looked over at the mirror... his jacket... damn, Scott's blasts must have done that... almost nothing left of it. 

And his shirt had not fared better, at least his T-shirt was not damaged; he pulled the brown jacket off... /Damn, I paid good money for that./ 

Well it was not his best shirt any way... that was good. 

/I need a shave./ he noted... why? He shaved this morning? 

Resting back at the bed placing his hand behind his neck, a little sleep would not hurt, ignoring the fact that he was going to sleep in the same room as a girl he didn't know. Someone that had tricked him in to getting a blood sample, he shuddered. 

/Maybe I should not have yelled at her like that, she only tried to help me./ remembering he had threaten to break her neck. 

/They must think I'm a lunatic./ he thought and turned to his side, What if they never got to go home? What if they where going to be stuck here for the rest of their lives. 

"Maybe we'll get killed by some super villain before that." he said softly, forgetting that he was talking out loud. 

"Don't say that..." Sammi said stopping trying to dry her hair for a moment. "We *ARE* getting home." 

"Yeah, right..." Jonas turned on to his back again. "Look, I know that most of the time this story work's out fine... but I don't think that there is some guy, or girl out there writing the happy ending here." 

Sammi didn't say any thing this guy sure was negative. 

"By the way... eh I mean... sorry I snapped at you in there.. It's just... ah forget it." Jonas stood up. "You done in there?" he pointed to the bathroom. 

Sammi nodded. 

**Admiral**

Amanda had used her powers to call the others while not alerting the X-men. She felt kinda guilty using Xavier's tricks, but desperate times called for desperate measures. When everyone was gathered outside, Amanda began to speak. 

" I think we all know why I called you here...." 

"Oh great! She's starting to sound like Xavier." complain Leilee. 

" I'll pretend I didn't hear that. Anyway...." 

"What happened with you and Xavier today?" asked Jonas. 

" Moving along!" huffed Amanda to the snickers of her friends. 

" Look guys. We need to get serious!" exclaimed Amanda, " We're in a strange place with comic book characters who we know everything about." 

This drew silence from everyone. Sammi looked nervous where Leilee had grown quiet. 

" As most of us have noticed by observing Cyclops, this world is either completely unlike the comics or some things have not yet occurred. Because we all know so much we could be a threat to the X-men and this world." 

" We need to find out why we're here before we blurt something out." declared Maria. 

Suddenly a noise came from behind them. The small group turn around to see Logan and the rest of the X-men behind them. 

" Blurt out what?" asked Cyclops. 

**A.C.**

"Nothing." Maria lied. 

Scott frowned and asked, "Look, I noticed that all of you are acting fairly odd about me. The way all of you look is like you saw a ghost." 

Tears came to Maria's eyes as she vanished again. "I'm sorry." Maria sobbed, "I need to know something. Here, why are you here instead of Alaska?" 

Scott blinked as he walked up to where he thought the young girl is at. "Well, after Xavier and the other X-Men returned from the Skrull home world from the past, we detected a strange dimensional flux. It passed but it started up again with you." 

"Oh my ---." Maria muttered as she walked back. Her invisible face was filled with fear as she glanced at Logan. 

All of the other writers cringed as they glanced at Logan and Cyclops. Logan looked confused and asked, "What?" 

**Maria Cline**

"I'm going to be sick. I have to get out of here." Sammi said as she jumped up and ran at full speed towards the house. 

"We better go check on her." Amanda said as she and the rest of the group ran back to the house. 

"What was that all about?" Jubilee asked as she looked at the running group. 

"I don't know, darling but I'm going to find out." Wolverine said as he headed for the house. 

**jubilee_79**

Sammi ran in the house and up the stairs. She thought she knew where she was going, but obviously not because she ran into someone who wanted answers just as bad as she did. 

"Oh my ---. I'm soooo sorry. I still can't find my way around here of course I have only been here a few hours so that is understandable. Right?" Sammi stopped babbling to see who she ran into, it was the last person she wanted to see, Wolverine. 

"Darling, Its alright. I thought no one could talk like Jubes, I guess I'm wrong." He said helping her up. 

" The great Wolverine admitting that he was wrong. Someone put that on the calender." Sammi said smiling. 

" Why were you running, kid?" He asked. 

"First, I know I just met you but DON'T CALL ME KID!!!!!!! Second, I don't know how to deal with something and before you ask no I can not talk about it. I have to go. Catch ya on the flip side, Bub." She turned and walked down the hallway leaving a very stunned Wolverine in her wake. When she got far enough away that she knew He couldn't hear or smell her she started to cry. 

"I can't do this. I can't live here no matter how much I want to. I'm going to have to go back to being just plain old, Samantha, the girl no one wanted." She said to herself as she cried for everything in her life. 

She didn't realize that someone was behind the door she was leaning on and heard the whole thing. 

**jubilee_79**

"Sammi?" a voice asked out. 

Sammi wiped her eyes and looked around. The door opened and closed on its own. "Maria?" 

"Yeah, it's me the invisible loudmouth." 

"You heard it?" 

"Yeah. Don't feel too bad, I want to go home too. I also know what it feels like to feel alone." 

"Yeah right." 

"It's true." Then a chair moved forward and stopped. "Hey, this invisible thing really isn't new to me. I was unnoticed all the time. At least, I feel that way. Don't worry, you're not alone. I'll be right here if you need someone to talk to. Even if you can't see me." 

**Maria Cline**

" Thanks. But you see I got into comics because their world was better than the one I'm in. Did you know that my favorite X-Men is Jubilee because I am exactly like her. But the big difference is that she has a family with the X-Men and Gen X. I have no one. I been on my own since I was thirteen. I really was living in a mall. When I first got here, I just wanted to leave because it was new, ya know? Now I don't want to leave because I get to be a part of something, a family." Sammi said starting to cry all over again. 

**jubilee_79**

Maria put her hand over her shoulder. "It's okay. I kinda want to stay here too." 

"You do?" 

"Yeah, well. Back home, everything is so hard. I was weak and I didn't really matter. Here, I'm special. I can do something that few other people can do. Okay, so all I can do is yell and turn invisible but that's some power. Who knows, maybe, I can help out here with my knowledge of this world." 

**Maria Cline**

"Yeah. Maybe we can but I don't have any powers, at least not yet." Sammi said as she heard Wolverine coming, she could smell his cigar smoke. 

" We better get out of here. Wolverine is coming and after I ran into him, I know he's going to want answers. I can't give them to him. I have no idea what happened with him being Death." Sammi grabbed Maria's arm as she started walking. 

"Maybe we can hide out in my room. Sammi said as they rounded the corner. 

" Can you find your way?" Maria asked. 

Sammi grinned, " Sure I just found my power." 

**jubilee_79**

Suddenly, there came a soft knock at the door. Leilee's head popped in. 

"Guys? You ok?" 

They two girls rubbed their eyes, wiping away tears. "Yeah. We're fine." 

"Um guys....I have a problem." 

"What," asked Maria, somewhat worried. 

"I think I got my powers." 

"What are they?" 

"Well, um..." She said softly as she walked into the room. My agility's increased, but that's not it. Come look." 

They walked out into the hallway to find....Wolverine crying. Blubbering like a little boy who had fallen and skinned his knee. 

"Ok. What did you do?" 

"Nothing! I just thought about how funny it would be to see him crying, and he did. I made Bobby wet his pants too. I think...I can control other people's bodily functions." 

**Leilee**

"Leilee, this is great! Instead of actually fighting, if a bad guy shows up we can just make him wet his pants and have him die of embarrassment; I love it. Oh, guess what I found my power too." Sammi said. 

" I didn't mean to." Leilee said. 

" Oh darling I didn't mean it that way. I like your powers. We all got awesome powers." Sammi said putting an arm around her shoulders. 

"So what are your powers?" Leilee asked smiling. 

"O.K. First things first, please stop him from crying. Its hard seeing my second favorite X-Man do that." Sammi said. 

"O.K. I'll try." Leilee thought about Wolverine the way he has always been and then before their eyes, He stopped crying and stood up ready to attack. 

"Alright! Which one of you did that to me? I'm only going to ask this once. Answer!!!" He shouted and standing ready for an attack. 

"She didn't mean it. So back off, BUB!!!!" Sammi said as all four of them heard a very familiar sound, "Skicht!" 

Everyone was shocked that it didn't come from Wolverine, it came from Sammi. When everyone looked at her eyes, They saw fireworks dancing around her head and in her eyes. 

**jubilee_79**


	3. Reality Bites-Part 3

Disclaimer: See earlier chapters.

**Reality Bites--part 3**

"So this is how I end up?" Jonas said as he landed in a tree top. 

He pulled himself down into the tree as if it could shelter him from the rest of the world. 

"Man, why me, why not bring another girl and leave me back home..." He was tired, sad and afraid, but he was not about to run to one of the girls and cry, not after that thing in the medlab... not that he thought he would even if he had not done that. 

/Maybe I can just stay here, they might think that I have disappeared./ he thought to himself and laughed. 

"Man I'm so out of place." 

He looked up at the sky leaning back on the tree; maybe it would all work out after all, he had been the one to fit in. 

"Mr. Ljungberg?" a voice called from somewhere. 

/Mr. Ljungberg?/ he thought to himself, someone was looking for him? 

Well he was in no hurry to be found. 

"Mr. Ljungberg, Would you please come down from the tree." Great, *Someone* had found him! 

Looking down he saw Storm standing at the bottom of the tree. 

~Sigh~ "Did you decide to lock us up in our rooms or something?" Jonas said sarcastically. 

"Any way, I don't feel to play nice today if you don't mind so if you would..." a sudden wind came and pushed him out of the tree. 

"And I do not have the time or will to stand here until you decide to play nice." Storm said looking rather irritated. 

Jonas frowned. "Why don't you fry me when your at it, eh? get it out of your system." he landed ten meters away, considering flying away from the mansion. 

"Look woman, I didn't ask for this, I didn't ask to be teamed up with these people or get Superstrength, invulnerability or even the ability to fly." 

"But you are here, you have a lot of frightened *friends* in there, and you are as afraid as they are, you hide it well... but I can see it in your eyes." Storm held out a hand. 

"You know if you want me to slap that hand away, you have to get closer, I can't reach it from here." Jonas said angry. 

Storm lowered her hand. "Xavier asked me to inform you that you should get some rest, in your rooms, he wants to know where all of you are if something was to Happen." 

"You want me to go back to that room, with that girl, oh please... no way..." Storm made a flash strike right in front of Jonas. 

"Are you coming or shall we do this the hard way." Storm was mad, Sammi had tried and help him, she was not to let him talk that way about her. 

For a moment Jonas considered taking her up on the challenge, but he was still not too sure on *how* invulnerable he was. 

He started walking back to the Mansion when Amanda's voice rang in his head. 

*EVERYONE SAMMI AND WOLVERINE ARE FIGHTING, STOP THEM BEFORE ANYONE GETS HURT.* 

===Living Quarters Hallway===

"Still tuff are we..." Logan said; both him and Sammi looking rather beaten up. 

Logan had her pushed up against the wall of a rather ripped up hallway, one claw extended to each side of her head. 

"Let me down and I'll show you..." Sammi said trying to catch her breath. 

"Why don't I do us all a favor and..." something crashed through the wall, grabbed Logan and jammed him up against the wall by the neck. 

"That's no way to treat a lady..." Jonas said looking at the somewhat surprised Wolverine. 

"Ye know kid, ye should know better than to interrupt a fight, now let me go before I drive a fist full of claws right in to yer gut." 

Jonas eyes widened, he slammed Logan against the other wall so hard that it left a rather big hole. 

"Look you crazy, short and neanderthal furball, I may not be to happy with the situation and I guess I'm no X-Man, but you try this again..."Jonas said ready to knock his one time favorite comic book character silly. 

"Jonas, stop it!" Sammi yelled out. 

**Admiral**

"STOP IT YOU GUYS!" Maria yelled out at the two. Sammi and Logan held their heads in pain as the surrounding glass shattered again. 

"Oops." Maria vanished again. 

Jonas rubbed his head and asked, "Why me?" 

Scott sighed as he said, "Maybe, we should have them train out their powers before someone gets hurt. Okay, who has which powers?" 

"I'm invisible and can scream really loud." Maria said softly. 

"Telepathy." Amanda admitted. 

"I can control other people's bodily functions." Leilee said as she grinned at Bobby. 

"I'm superstrong and can fly." Jonas said. 

"Supersensitive senses, and claws." Sammi said as she let out her claws. 

"I can blow things up like Gambit." Cara said as she came in. 

Scott nodded. "Okay, it's obvious that we need help. Maria, I'll call Sean of Generation X. His sonic scream is similar to yours." 

"Cool." 

"Gambit, you help train Cara with her powers." 

**Maria Cline**

Cara and Gambit stared at each other... 

~Me, in a training session with Gambit? How, why, this is ridiculous, impossible! I can't do this!!! I just know I'm gonna die!!!~ Cara thought wildly... 

"EEP!!!" was all Cara said. 

Wolverine almost choked; that sound seemed more hilarious every time he heard it. 

"Why do you keep makin' dat sound, petit'?" Gambit said, grinning at the now blushing girl. 

**Rainfall**

~Danger room control room~ 

"Read my lips...I AM NOT WEARING SPANDEX!" Jonas said and crossed his arms over his chest. 

"It's unstable molecules; do you want the rest of your clothes to end up the same way as your jacket?" Rogue said and held up a uniform. 

"Then make me a pair of Jeans and a t-shirt out of that material, I'm not getting in to *that*." Jonas said as Rogue grabbed her forehead. 

Sammi and Maria also looked at the tight uniforms, not too interested to put them on. 

"There must be something else." Sammi said looking down at Cara and Gambit in the danger room. 

**Admiral**

~Danger Room~ 

~PINK! They just HAD to give me a PINK uniform!!! And not just any shade of pink, NOOOOO!!! A really BRIGHT shade of HOT PINK!!! I feel like a blasted POWER RANGER in this get-up!!! And what do they mean, "It's the only one your size,"? I thought SPANDEX was one size fits all!!!~ a very angry Cara thought to herself. 

Gambit and Cara stood in the Danger room. Their two pairs of red, glowing eyes warily studied each other...one belonging to the student; the other, the mentor. 

~I never thought that Gambit would be my mentor,~ thought Cara, smiling inwardly. 

The corners of Gambit's mouth lifted suddenly, and he took on a lazy, my-guard-is-down sort of stance...at least, that's what it looked like to Cara. Up in the Control room, however, Sammi knew better... 

"Uh, oh," she said to the others, "Cara is in BIIIIG TROUBLE!!!" 

"You know, petit'?" said Gambit, in his low, Cajun drawl, "That color be jus' a bit too bright for you, Non? It make you look like a sunburnt pig!" He finished. He smiled even broader at her reaction. 

Cara's red eyes grew huge and round, and her face lit up in an angry shade of pink, that put her suit to shame! 

"TAKE THAT BACK, YOU OVERGROWN SON-OF-A-SWAMP-TOAD!!!" she screamed, and lunged at Gambit, slashing clumsily at him with her new bo staff. 

Gambit deftly wove in and out of her swings, still with that annoying smile on his face. He quickly moved behind her and took her down with one swift swipe to her legs. Cara fell flat on her face. 

Gambit tucked one boot under her belly, and rolled her over...his smile gone. 

"Lesson number one, petit': In battle, Don't lose your temper!!!" He said. 

**Rainfall**

"Sure Gambit, I will remember that." She said and smile sweetly, Gambit lost track of the situation, glad to put his new student in her place. 

"Gambit?" Cara said in a really baby sweet voice. 

Gambit smiled. "Yes...?" 

"You called me what before... sunburnt pig? WELL CHECK THE COLORS ON THOSE IN THE MORNING!!!" she said/yelled and in a quick motion, when Gambit was off guard... kicked Gambit in the...well, a painful place. 

Gambit's eye's grew wide for a moment, as if wondering if she really hit... she did!!! 

He fell to his side screaming. 

Jonas made a painful face... "That HURT..." he said and shook his head violently. 

Rogue turned when she heard Gambit yell out in pain, Cara simply replied in her usual... "EEP!!!" and closed one eye as she realized what she had done. 

Gambit should have paid more attention... to what HE was doing, everyone thought. 

**Admiral**

~Maria and Amanda's Room~ 

Maria stared at her uniform. It was green and black with a definite 'X' in the middle. "Welcome to the X-Men, Maria." she muttered. 

There was a knock on the door. "YEAH?!" she yelled out accidentally knocking over a chair and shattering a window. 

"Oops. Come in." 

Scott entered the room and looked around. "Maria?" 

"Yeah?" Maria's voice asked in mid-air. 

"Sean will be coming in a few hours." 

"Good." 

"I have something for you. How good can you see without your glasses?" 

"Ummm... okay up close but everything at a distance is a blur." 

"Okay, I need your glasses so Hank can make up a pair of sight goggles or maybe a visor. You can't exactly battle effectively with a pair of regular glasses." 

"Yeah, you would know." Maria said as she smiled in an invisible way. She reappeared and handed Scott her glasses. 

"I'll hurry up and give these back to you as soon as we can. I can give you several styles to pick from." 

"Cool. Can I get a pair of prescription sunglasses too? Something purple or blue?" 

"I guess." 

**Maria Cline**

"I still can't beelive you managed to talk me in to this." Jonas looked over his Black and blue AND tight uniform. 

Sammi smile wide. "Wasn't that hard." she responded as he got out of the bathroom. 

"Sure is tight." he said and blushed slightly. 

Sammi had noted the same, but she was still not dressed in the weird uniform... now it was her turn to change. 

**Admiral**

~Rec Room~ 

Cara sat huddled in a corner of the darkened Rec room. She had run there and hid away after the episode with Gambit...being too ashamed and embarrassed to talk to anyone. 

"Why did I lose my temper like that? Oh heck...I hope I didn't do any permanent damage!" she said softly to herself. "If anyone had done that to any of my brothers..." 

Cara had three brothers (two older, one younger), and five older sisters. Though they had all fought (a lot) while they were growing up, she loved them, and was fiercely protective of them all. 

"And Gambit always reminded me of my older brother...I can't believe I did that to him!" She sighed, and rubbed her forehead with both hands. 

Cara heard a sound, and looked up to see a figure standing in the open doorway... 

**Rainfall**

~Jonas and Sammi's room, in the Bathroom~ 

" I can't believe I have to wear this." Sammi said as she looked at herself in the mirror."At least its purple and black. My favorite." 

"O.K. Its now or never." Sammi sais as she walked out into the room. Jonas had his back turned to her, looking out the window, so she said,"One super hero ready for training." 

Jonas turned to see a girl about 5'8" with a very tight uniform that seemed to be perfect on her. He could only tell that it was Sammi by the blue streak in her hair that she left down. 

**jubilee_79**

Jonas let out a low whistle, blushed, and quickly looked away... 

**Rainfall**

~Rec Room~ 

"Cara? Are you ok?" Leilee asked as she stepped into the room. 

Cara started rubbing her forehead again. "No. I can't believe I did that!" 

Leilee walked over and sighed. "I would have done it to him too. It's ok. Gambit has a big mouth. He should have learned more about you before doing that. The biggest rule of combat! The one Cyke always drones on about! KNOW YOUR ENEMY! It was his fault. He set himself up for that. I'm not saying you should do it all the time to him when you're pissed, but....Once in the beginning is understandable. And if anyone says otherwise, I'll embarrass them horribly. Feel better?" 

Cara giggled and nodded a little. "Yeah. A little bit." 

Leilee grinned. "Now come on. I still have to pick out my outfit for the spandex brigade and find out from Xavy who's gonna train me. Hopefully it'll be someone cute..." 

**Leilee**

~Jonas and Sammi's Room~ 

Jonas Was Bright red, an interesting contrast to the Black and Blue uniform. 

"Eh, sorry... you look great... I mean that look's good on you, I... I..." He wanted to smack himself. 

/DAMN, can't you say something so you don't come out as a complete idiot./ He thought and looked at her again, she did look great... better then great, beautiful. 

/Ah what the hell, after all that has happened.../ Jonas kicked the shy part of himself in to the corner of his mind where *he* usually scowled away in these kind of moments. 

"Before you tell me to drop dead, You look beautiful... and not only in that uniform." Jonas quickly became aware of what he said... that was not the way he planned it, not that he didn't mean... 

/I'm dead... I'm dead./ he thought as he looked at the rather puzzled Sammi. 

**Admiral**

~Maria and Amanda's room~ 

Maria looked over the various different types of eyewear that was before her. "Wow." 

"Want any?" Scott asked. 

"I need to try all of them on." Maria admitted as she walked into the bathroom with her uniform and various eyewear. 

"Okay, just hurry up. Sean should be coming soon." 

*****

Maria got out of her bathroom in her uniform. It was tight with a loose black jacket. There were elbow pads and knee pads. Her body suit was a dark green with an 'X' on her stomach and the back of her jacket. There were knee high black boots and her fore arms were covered with a black gloves. On her face was a pair of dark goggles with her hair up. 

Amanda entered the room and gasped, "Maria. You look good." 

"Thanks." Maria said as she looked in the mirror. "But it's missing something." 

"Like?" Scott asked. 

"I don't know. Can you get that clothing replicator to make up something else?" 

"I guess." 

Maria smiled and told him what she wanted. 

A few minutes later, Scott returned with the said item and Maria put it on. "Oh yeah." 

"Maria, that's weird." Amanda said. 

"Weird is my characteristic." Maria said as she admired herself in the mirror. On top of her head was a black felt cowboy hat. 

**Maria Cline**

Amanda left Maria to find Xavier. She hadn't received her costume yet. She figure that he had hid himself in his office as he always did. It took her only a few seconds to lock onto his signature and locate the room. She entered without knocking. 

(That is rude.) spoke Xavier in her mind. 

(So I guess this conversation will all be done in our minds. I'm think I'm going end up with a Headache.) 

(This will help you to gain control over your powers.) 

(How come I don't believe you?) 

(You seem to be a little distrustful of me. Would you cared to elaborate as to why?) 

(Not that those cute blue eyes give you away, but I just have this feeling that you have a tendency to hide things when you feel it's necessary, even when you shouldn't.) 

(Cute blue eyes?) responded Xavier slightly flushed. 

Amanda couldn't believe that she had said it out loud. She also couldn't believe that she was flirting with him. Her last boyfriend had been real mean and she swore that she would never look at a man again, but for some reason she was comfortable around him. She was more forceful and outgoing; not the normal wimp she was who just took orders. 

(So...) she continued ( who's going to be training me and where's my uniform?) 

Xavier just smiled. 

**A.C.**

~Elsewhere~ 

Ryan was having a bad week. A really, really bad week. First she had broken up with her boyfriend because she had caught him cheating on her. Second she had been arrested for setting his house on fire for revenge. She tried to convince the cops that the jerk deserved it but they didn't seem to see her point. To top it off she had been fired for not showing up to work because she had been in jail. So she did what any reasonable person would do… she got drunk. Now she was suffering the consequences of that action… a really bad hangover. 

As Ryan got up she noticed something strange. She wasn't at home and she wasn't alone. A tall hairy man with long blonde hair who looked like he should be on one of those stupid wrestling shows was staring straight at her. 

"Mornin' frail, Mind telling me what you are doing in my room?" 

"Having a nightmare?" 

Before Ryan new what was happening she was lifted 3 feet in the air staring down a set of fangs that could make a Doberman run away crying. Being that Ryan pretty much felt she had nothing to live for she bit the guys face as hard as she could causing him to drop her right on her butt in surprise. Just as the man was ready to gut her for sure a new figure in the room spoke up. 

"Sabertooth! Leave her alone! We need her!" 

**Le Fae**

~Sammi and Jonas' room~ 

"Ya really think so?" Sammi asked kinda scared of the answer. 

"I don't know why that came out but yah. I do." Jonas said trying not to faint. 

"Thanks. You look great, too." Sammi said before she could stop her words. 

**jubilee_79**

They stood in silence for awhile; even though she did what she did in the Medlab, Sammi is a very shy girl when it comes to this kinda stuff. 

Just then there was a knock on the door. 

"Saved by the knock." She said blushing. "Who is it?" 

"Your training partner." Said a low gruff voice. 

She winced and looked at Jonas and said, "Great I'm being trained by the guy I just got into a fight with. By the way, thanks for the help." 

She went to the door and opened it up and looking at Wolverine said, " If you're the best at what you do, teach." 

**jubilee_79**

Rogue popped her head in. "Well are ya ready, ah guess I have the privilege of teaching ya." 

Jonas Looked at Sammi. "Is it standard, that we first fight then learn?" Jonas said frustrated. 

"Ya have a big mouth there kid, watch it." Logan said. 

"I happen to say what I think, and you happen to be irritating, don't call me KID!" Jonas said irritated on the excellent timing Logan had. 

Sammi followed Logan, looking at Jonas giving him the crazy sign pointing at Logan, Jonas smiled. Unfortunately Rogue noted the smile. 

"Ah see that ya two solved your differences." Rogue said slapping Jonas on the back laughing, He tried to maintain a frown but it got lost in a big blush. 

"Do ya have the power to turn red?" Rogue teased him. 

"Let's go, what's first." Jonas said pushing down the urge to knock her out of the room. 

"Testing your strength is first on ma check list... Hank has the stuff set up in Danger room." 

======

"What is this?" Jonas Asked looking at the rather strange machine in front of him, it looked like something out of some really old sci-fi movie. 

"This my dear Ljungberg, is how we will determine your level of strength, I have set for the standard weight." Hank said scowling carefully behind Rogue. 

"Lift that." Rogue said and pointed to a rather frail looking metal stick. 

Jonas grabbed it expecting more resistant. "Like this?" he said and pushed it up with one hand. 

Beast's jaw dropped, carefully grabbing his neck and swallowing. "That... was set on level Ten." Hank said and looked at Rogue. 

"And level ten is?" Jonas asked and let go and the weight slammed down. 

"The equivalent of Ten Metric ton's." 

Jonas' eyes went blank... "TEN TON'S" 

"Would you please try again, I have set the machine to increase until you can no longer press up." 

Jonas grabbed, first it was easy but slowly the weight increased. 

/Damn, I'm not going down this early./ He thought and clenched his teeth. 

After a minute, his arms started to buckle, the sweat running off him, and he cried out... not letting go... shaking like crazy, until he gave up. 

"Damn," he cried out. Resting on his back. 

Scott scream caughtt his attention. 

"68 TON'S!!!" 

/Was that 68 ton's?/ Well what ever it was it sure took all he had. 

"Why don't we try to fly instead; I need to get some air." Jonas said and grabbed Rogue's outstretched hand. 

**Admiral**

Logan led Sammi outside. 

"So what's first, teach?" Sammi asked as they stopped at the edge of the forest. 

"We're gonna test your senses. What do you hear?" 

Sammi concentrated and said, "Birds, a rabbit running through bushes, a stream and a deer I think drinking from it and Jean coming out the back door with Jubilee. They're talking about Jubilee training with us." She looked at him and said," So how did I do?" 

"Great. The Stream is over three miles away and the back door is about two from here." He said with what seemed like pride. 

"You're kidding. I have a question though, Why would Jubilee be training with us?" She asked. 

"Darlin', when you got mad in there you had fireworks dancing around ya, like Jubilee. So We think you have more than Super senses and claws. I already know you can fight. You weren't about to back down in there and We both seemed to be fighting a battle that neither of us would win. So now we are going to learn about your other powers." He said looking in the direction that Jean and Jubilee were coming from. 

**jubilee_79**

~Maria and Amanda's room~ 

"I can't believe this." Maria muttered as she stared at her reflection. 

There was a knock at the door. "Yes?" she asked making sure she didn't destroy anything. 

"This is Banshee." 

Maria smiled and opened the door. The man standing there looked older than in the comics. He had short red hair and definite wrinkles. "Hello, Mr. Cassidy." Maria said as she faded again. "I thought you might be here later." 

"Ye must be Maria. Me and the other students as well as Em came here as soon as we could." 

"Yeah." 

The two walked down the hall to another room. 

"Now, the first thing we will do is learn how powerful yer scream is." Sean explained as he showed Maria to a strange device that looked vaguely like a washing machine. "Now, I want ye to scream yuir loudest in this hole." Sean explained as he opened the door. 

Maria nodded and took a deep breath as she put her head in the hole. She let out a definite, "AAAAAAAEEEEEIIIIIEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!" 

Maria coughed a little and asked, "Is that okay?" 

Sean nodded and glanced at the monitor and gasped, "175!" 

"Huh?" 

"Oh, that's the decibels. A jet is like 75 decibels and my scream would be like 160." 

"Wow." Maria muttered as she took a sip of water. 

"Okay, we now know that yuir scream is loud, I'll help ye learn how to focus yuir power so it won't hurt anyone by pure accident. Who knows, maybe you can fly too." 

"Fly?" Maria asked as she paled and turned invisible. "I can't stand heights." 

"I'm sorry. I dinnea know." 

"Hey, that's okay. Say, did Cyclops or Xavier told you about where we're from?" 

**Maria Cline**

"Nae, He didn't lass. All he said was that he had some young mutants that needed help. So here we are." 

"O.K." Marie said. 

She was about to say more when Sean and her heard Jubilee come screaming into the house and down the hallway. They heard another voice that said, "Get back here, Lee. I'm gonna throw you into the lake!!!!" 

"Oh No. Sammi. We have to help Jubilee." Maria said as she ran for where they heard the voices. 

"Is She a friend of yours?" Sean asked as he followed. 

**jubilee_79**

They got to the living room to see Jubilee and Sammi standing off. Being that Jubilee or Sammi for that matter were very loud. Both teams were at the door to see what was going on. 

The sight they got was a very wet Sammi, and Jubilee trying not to laugh at the fact that Sammi looked like a drowned rat. 

"What is going on here?" Sean asked being the ever present grownup. 

"She started it and I'm gonna finish it, so back off, Irish." Sammi said as she lunged at Jubilee and caught her as she tried to go left. Sammi picked her up and started walking out the room. Everyone started following, fearing for either Jubilee or Sammi's safety. 

Sammi walked to the lake with Jubilee over her shoulder kicking and screaming. When she got there she walked out to the dock and dropped Jubilee in. Then she turned to see the two groups and Generation X staring wide eyed. She just looked at them and said, " I'm hungry. When do we eat?" And she started walking back to the house. 

"That's my girl." Wolverine said to no one in particular as Sammi started walking up to the House. 

**jubilee_79**

Sammi was hungry and her nose led the way to the kitchen. She looked in the fridge. Nothing. She turned to see Amanda, Leilee, Maria, and Cara all staring at her. 

"What?" She asked as if nothing happened. 

"Don't 'what' me. Why did you throw Jubes in the lake?" Amanda asked. 

"She pushed me in the creek out back and I promised her I would throw her in the lake when I got out and I did." Sammi said matter of factly. "Besides, Wolvie said to do our worst. I didn't want to hurt her so I found another way to fight her. Fun. We were joking around. Why?" 

**jubilee_79**

"I don't know...I just felt I should say something. I guess I just a little nervous. I have yet to get my uniform or my trainer." Stated Amanda. 

"I was wondering why you were still in plain clothes." Replied Maria. 

"I tried to ask Xavier, but somehow we got off subject and he never around to telling me." 

"How did you get off subject?" asked Cara. 

"Don't ask. Any way I don't know what I need training for. I think I got this telepathy down. It isn't hard to use. I know how to fight because I've be in martial arts since I was a kid." 

"You know martial arts?" ask Sammi. 

"Didn't I mention it? Well, it doesn't matter. I just want to get my uniform and find out who my trainer is." 

(I am right here.) 

**A.C.**

~Outside~ 

"Ya should try to practice turning more, you have speed but your maneuverability is not that good." Rogue said as she and Jonas Landed outside the Mansion. 

"you could say that again, I must have knocked over every target I was trying to avoid." Jonas said a little sad he didn't fare better at Rogue's test. 

"Ya'll get it better next time..." Rogue patted him on the shoulder. 

"Yeah... next... time." Jonas said looking rather sad. 

"Ya ok?" Rogue asked concerned. 

"I'm ok, it's nothing... is there somewhere a little, off? where one could be sure to be alone around here?" Jonas asked looking out in to the forest. 

Rogue, showed Jonas a place on the Mansion ground's that was a little ways off. 

"I want to be alone, if that is ok..." Jonas said but noticed that Rogue had already left. 

"Ok... let's get this over with." he rested his head against a tree. 

/Come on now you bastard let it out before you explode./ first a soft sob.. that quickly turned into a uncontrollable crying... He might never be going home, and he liked it... he had nothing to return too, that scared him. 

But he was not as alone as he had hoped, someone was watching, someone had heard him... 

/Ok, you can stop now, you cried... stop it now./ Jonas tried to convince himself, wrapping himself up in his own arms. 

But who is watching from the shadows? 

**Admiral**

~Kitchen~ 

"I'm going out for a walk. Anyone care to join?" Sammi said as she found nothing to eat. 

"No. We're going to start training some more." Professor X said as he led a startled Amanda back to his office. 

"Yeah, we're going to do the same. Bye...Have a nice walk." Cara, Leilee, and Maria said. 

~~~~~~~~~~Outside~~~~~~~~~~

As soon as she stepped foot off the porch she heard it. /Someone crying. But who?/ She thought. 

She followed the sound and was surprised to Jonas leaning up against a tree crying. 

She couldn't stand it. She slowly stepped out and said, "Are you O.K.? I might know what you're going through, maybe I can help you?" She hoped he would start talking. 

**jubilee_79**

Jonas Froze... someone was there... not someone, Sammi. 

His hand grabbed the side of the tree, what was he going to do? 

"I'm ok..." he said, trying to keep back the tears... not that it worked. 

Sammi stood looking at him. 

"I should want to go home, right? I have nothing back home too, but it doesn't feel right to stay... we don't belong here." 

He lifted his head from the tree. 

"For the first time in my life, I feel like I can do something... something other then to sit in a stool tapping a keyboard and moving a mouse." 

He yelled out and smashed his head down on the tree... breaking it in half. 

"Not just waiting for the next damn thing to break my life in half." he sighed. "As if I had one left." 

He sat back, resting his back on the broken off tree. "I have nothing... not even the will to go home and face it..." 

Jonas closed his eyes. "I'm sorry, I should throw this on you, I'm so pathetic." he looked at his hands. 

"You try to help... no... you Helped me with that stuff in medlab... and I... I..." His face turned guilty and more sad. "Why did you do that, I mean you had no idea who I was... I would try to help someone too... but I would most likely have been too shocked to be of any help at a time like that." 

"And all I did to thank you was to threaten to break your neck." 

**Admiral**

"I helped because I don't know. When I saw you I felt that in a way there was a connection. I wanted to help and I couldn't think of anything to say because I hate needles myself, so I did the first thing that came to mind. I flashed ya." Sammi said moving gently down to sit next to him. 

And continued, "As for the part about me wanting to go home, well, I guess we're in the same boat. I don't want to go back. Back there I was the girl no one wanted. You know how Jubilee lived in a mall before she saw the X-Women, well, I did that. I lived in a mall for three years before I turned 16 and could work. I've been on my own since I was 7 because that's when my parents died." 

"So you talk about being alone; I work, eat, write on the storyboard and sometimes if I'm lucky I sleep for a few hours." Sammi finished and she was holding her knees with her forehead on them crying all the tears she thought she didn't have left, but did. 

**jubilee_79**

Jonas sat for a few moments, silently watching the girl as she cried. He hated to see anyone (especially a beautiful girl) cry, but he didn't know what to do. 

/Do something, you fool! Don't just sit here!/ he thought, mentally kicking himself. 

He reached over and put one arm gently around her shoulders. Sammi looked up, startled; tears were still running down her cheeks. Jonas wiped some of the tears away with the back of his hand, then put his other arm around her, enveloping her in a warm hug. Sammi leaned her head against his shoulder. 

**Rainfall**

"I never lost my parents, I have had a home all my life... I can't begin to imagine what that's like." Jonas said as she wrapped her up even tighter. 

Nothing more could be said, the guilt was building in his stomach, did his own problems even matter? 

There was so much pain, and there was really nothing he could do but hope that he at least he could help, by staying there, and try to comfort her. 

After a moment she stopped crying still holding her head on his shoulder. 

"Why do you feel alone?" she asked not looking up. 

"Can't handle... people." he said and sounded sad. 

"I have had so much pain in my life from people I trust, I don't let people in, that is why I love fiction... you can like a character, but you never need to worry about getting hurt by them, they don't exist... or they are not supposed to." 

Tears started to form in his eyes again...he closed them tight. 

"And now I have a chance to start over my life, so why do I think it's so damn wrong, when it feels so right?" 

**Admiral**

"I know what you mean. Right now this is the closest I've been to a real person in a very long time and I don't want to lose it. I keep praying that I....We can stay here and start over again." Sammi said, praying that he felt the same way. She never wanted to leave this place and possibly these arms. She never wanted to lose that feeling. The feeling of being protected and liked. 

**jubilee_79**

He had never been this close to anyone... it was strange... he had known her for a matter of hours... and now he was feeling lightheaded. 

Jonas could not believe what he was hearing or feeling; he liked her, could it be, did she maybe...? 

"I want to... stay here..." He swallowed silently, deciding to put his fears and regrets aside and concentrate on the moment. 

"...with you." he said softly and hugged her close, hoping that the moment could last forever... 

He felt her hug him back and he put his head on her shoulder. 

**Admiral**


	4. Reality Bites-Part 4

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel. All non-Marvel Characters belong to the writers of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

Rainfall's Note: Sorry about the delay in posting... I've been working and haven't been near my computer in over a week. Without further delay, On to Chapter Four! :-) 

**Reality Bites--part 4**

Maria, Cara and Leilee were still in the kitchen. Oblivious to the scene outside, they were sitting around the table, making small talk. 

"I love your hat," said Cara to Maria, "It's cool!" 

"Thanks!" Maria smiled at the girl. 

"Your new suit looks good on you!" Maria said to Leilee. 

Leilee smiled at her light blue and cream colored suit, and said, "It's okay. But," she smiled wryly, "I still don't know who my trainer is. Xavy said that it would be a surprise!" 

Just then, Sean Cassidy strode into the kitchen. 

"Are ye ready, lass?" he said to Maria, smiling at the girl. 

"Sure. See you later," she said to Cara and Leilee. She got up from the table, turned and followed Sean out of the kitchen. 

Cara looked wryly at her own hot-pink suit. 

/I don't really mind pink that much, there are some shades of it that I actually like. But HOT PINK?!!/ she thought to herself. /I wonder if Hank.../ 

Cara's thoughts were interrupted by a figure coming in to the kitchen. It was Hank. 

"Good afternoon, ladies," Beast said, smiling at the two girls. "Cara, your new outfit is now ready. It's in your room..." He was interrupted by a sudden shout from Cara. 

"YIPPEEEEEE!!!" shouted Cara. 

She quickly jumped up from the table, grabbed Beast in a bear-hug, and tore down the hallway leaving a gaping Beast and a laughing Leilee behind. 

************************ 

Cara rounded a corner, running at full speed, and almost crashed into Cyclops. 

Cyclops jumped out of the way, just in time, and the still running Cara left a gaping Cyclops behind. 

"Sorry! I can't stop now! I've got something to do!!!" she yelled over her shoulder. 

She ran into the room that she and Leilee were sharing, almost tearing the door off its hinges as she entered. 

She stopped abruptly, and looked at the packages on her bed. A wide grin spread itself on her face...then she lunged for the packages, grabbed them all up in her arms, ran into the bathroom and slammed the door closed with her foot. 

******************** 

A few minutes later, Cara stepped out of the bathroom. She had her waist-length dark-brown hair in a braid, and she was dressed in her new outfit: 

A light-pink suit with hot-pink trim; 

A hot-pink belt around her waist with the traditional X symbol on the front; 

Hot-pink knee-length boots; 

And hot-pink half-gloves on her hands. 

To top it all off, she also wore an ankle-length, gray suede trench coat. 

"The gang are all probably going to have a laughing fit when they see my new outfit; but, I actually like it! So, I'll just let it go." she said. 

She picked her bo staff off of her bed, collapsed it, and slipped it into one of the inside pockets of her trench coat. She smiled as she looked at another pocket... 

"Okay, Gambit usually keeps a deck of cards in his pocket...but I don't want to do that, because it's his trademark. What should I keep in my pocket?" Cara wondered out loud. 

**Rainfall**

Cara's eyes brightened when she saw a poker chip on the floor. "Hmmm... poker chips. Small, lightweight, cheap, and if we're ever in Vegas, I can use it as money." She picked it up and put it in her pocket. "Maybe, I can get someone to drive me to the nearest mall." 

***** 

Amanda stared at her new uniform. "Wow." she muttered as she put it on. It was a dark blue with long black gloves and matching boots. On her belt was a definite 'X'. 

She put on the uniform and it fitted perfectly due to the unstable molecules of the suit. 

There was a knock on the door. "Come in, Jean." Amanda called out. 

Jean entered the room and nodded, "You used your telepathy to know who I am, right?" 

"Yeah. So, you're the one training me with the telepathy." 

"Yes, how are your shields?" 

***** 

"Okay, Lass." Sean said as the two were in the Danger Room. It had been programmed for target practice. Sean gestured to a series of bottles. "Now, watch me. Here's how to do a focused scream without hurting anyone else's ears." 

Sean took a deep breath and let out his famous sonic scream. All of the bottles in front of him shattered. Maria blinked in surprise. It didn't sound so loud to her. 

"Now, ye try. Computer, reset target room." 

Maria took a deep breath and screamed at the bottles, "AAAAAAHHHHH!!!" 

The bottles shattered. "Not bad." Sean admired, "Now, how's yuir hand-to-hand combat skills." 

"Ummm... I don't know how to fight." 

"Okay, now it's time for hand-to-hand combat training." 

**Maria Cline**

Cara's red eyes twinkled... She knew the perfect person... He didn't look like he was busy when she almost ran into him a few minutes ago. 

Cara once again ran out of the room to go track him down. 

************** 

**five minutes later** 

Cara finally found her "quarry" in the garage. He was searching for something in the glove compartment of his car. 

"Hi Cyclops!" she said in her most sweet and innocent voice. She smiled sweetly and showed her dimples... 

Now, anyone who knew Cara would tell you that she only had dimples when she wanted something...and she knew how to get her way; so, watch out Cyke! 

Cyclops looked up from what he was doing, and stared in surprise at the pink and gray wonder before him... 

/What in the world has she done to herself?/ he thought. Tactfully, he avoided asking her about the suit, and instead... 

"Okay, Cara. What is it that you need?" he said. He smiled at her startled expression. 

"How did you know I needed something?" Cara asked. 

Cyclops grinned and replied, "You've forgotten that I've been living with Jubilee for the past few years." 

"Drat! That means that you're immune to my "powers of persuasion!" the girl jokingly said. 

She smiled a more genuine smile, and said, "Actually, there is something I need you to do; if you're willing..." 

Cyclops raised an eyebrow. "And that would be..." He asked. 

Cara grinned and asked, "Cyclops, could you drive me to the mall?" 

"Did someone mention 'Mall'?" said Jubilee, sticking her head in through the garage door. She was grinning from ear to ear. 

**Rainfall**

"PLEEEEEEEEEEEASE?" Cara and Jubilee both asked Cyclops; and both had on their most innocent, sweet, and hopeful faces. 

Cyclops groaned and put one hand over his sunglasses. /Oh, great! Now there's two of them. Double Trouble!/ he thought. 

Cara and Jubilee looked at each other and grinned. 

******** 

**Rainfall**

**

_~Baddies Lair~_

**

Ryan lay on her "new " bed playing with her tongue piercing and pulling on her belly piercing. She always seemed to do that when she had something big on her mind. So big and ugly wanted her to go against the X-Men and their new friends. 

"Welcome to the Twilight Zone", She thought as she alternated from pulling at her belly ring to her labret piercing. Ryan's now ex-boyfriend loved the X-men and Ryan now hated him so why shouldn't she. "Plus the fact that I am probably in some alcohol induced coma and this is all a bad dream." 

Ryan didn't realize that she had said that last part out loud until someone answered her. 

"I would almost agree with you on that one Frail considering you smell like a couple bottles of Vodka, but I know the truth of the matter. This is real." 

"Didn't anyone ever teach you to knock Scooby?" 

"Don't push it girl! The boss said I had to be nice to you now, but when this is over don't think I won't gut ya the first chance I get." 

"What a gentleman! What are you doing here?" 

"The boss wants me to train ya. Put this on and take that s--- out of your face. " 

"Sorry buddy I take my piercings out for no man." 

"Fine have it your way. I'll enjoy taking them out for ya." 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Maria moaned as she rubbed her aching arm with an ice bag. "Sorry if I was hard on ye." Sean said as he gave her a glass of soda. 

"No problem." Maria muttered as she accepted the soft drink. The last hour had been filled with flips, punches, and kicks. She was a physically weak person so she didn't have Sean's strength. But she was fast and kept on going invisible. 

"You will need some way to fight without your powers. These days a mutant or technology could wipe them out." 

"I know." Maria said as she recalled a recent storyline about all of the mutants losing their powers. She pondered and she replied, "Well, I do like sharp objects... I got it! Maybe if I have a pair of gloves that have like really sharp claws on the nails, that would be real good." 

**Maria Cline**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

The two figures circled each other in a large metallic room. One growling and snarling like some wild animal and the other smiling and laughing like a lunatic. 

"Sabertooth, make sure you only push her enough to trigger her mutant powers and then see what she can do with them," Big and ugly said. He was standing beside a new figure, a woman with blue skin and red hair. 

"Don't worry, I'll go easy on the little girl." 

Suddenly Sabertooth lashed out at Ryan slicing at her stomach but just barely missing. Ryan was for once glad that her crazy Vietnam veteran father had taught her some combat moves. "Never thought they would ever come in handy," Ryan thought to herself as she jumped away from another slicing claw. 

"You're going to have to do better then that Scooby!" Ryan shouted at Sabertooth laughing. 

Just then something strange happened the big snarling man turned into a brown snarling dog with a blue collar and a tag that had the initials "SD" on it. 

Ryan then fell to the floor in laughter. 

Mystique whispered to Sinister "Well now we know what her powers are." 

"I wonder if she can also change her own shape, I think I am going to need you to work with her on that Mystique." 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

"Um, Cycke. Don't ya think it would be a good idea if we took everyone to the mall?" Jubilee asked as they were starting to leave. 

"Everyone?" He asked praying that she didn't mean the whole team of Genx and the new team. 

"Well, just the new ones. Ya know they don't have any clothes except the ones they came in and their uniforms. I think they need to be at least asked, don't ya?" 

"Alright, you guys go see if they want to." Scott said warily. 

********************************************************************* 

Cara didn't know exactly where everyone was so she went to find Amanda. She could help her. 

**jubilee_79**

Cara looked around hoping to find Amanda. "Amanda!" she yelled out. 

"Cara?" Maria said as she became visible again. "What's wrong?" 

"Maria, do you want to go to the mall?" 

"The mall?" Maria repeated as she smiled. 

"Yeah, get ourselves some clothes and some other things." 

"Great! And the Professor would be covering the bill!" Maria yelled out as Cara held her head. 

"So, you wanna come?" 

"Sure. Besides, I want to see the comics of this world." Maria said as she held out her hands. "Oh, by the way, I got these new gloves for my uniform. Nice huh?" 

Cara glanced down at her gloves to see them pointed and sharp. "Wow." 

"I'll go and change." 

"Okay, have everyone meet at the garage so Scott can take us there." 

Maria dashed off to her room to change into her only civilian clothes. 

**Maria Cline**

*********** 

Cara ran outside, in the direction she had seen Sammi walk earlier. 

/Where could she be?/ she wondered. 

A couple of minutes later, she had her answer. There was Sammi, and she was sitting with Jonas next to a broken tree. 

"Oops! Sorry! I hope I didn't interrupt anything!" she said, blushing. 

Sammi and Jonas abruptly pulled apart, startled at the sudden appearance of Cara. 

Then their eyes widened as they took IN her APPEARANCE... 

"What happened to the Hot-P..." Jonas started to say, but he stopped himself, remembering what happened to Gambit. 

"Well, I decided I needed a change. Besides," Cara replied, motioning to her trench coat, "I love Gambit's trench coat, and just HAD to have one." she finished, grinning. 

"Now, back to the reason why I'm out here; Scott has graciously 'volunteered' to take us to the mall, so if you want to go, hurry and get changed and meet us in the garage!" she said. 

She turned and ran back to the mansion, so she could get changed. 

/If I go out like this, I'm going to stick out like a sore thumb,/ she thought. Then she remembered something.../I'm going to have to borrow a shirt from someone; my only shirt is stained with blood! Also, how do I get my hands on some sunglasses?/ she wondered, remembering her glowing red eyes. 

********** 

**Rainfall**

"We should probably get going, huh?" Sammi said as she started to get up. 

"Yeah, we should." Jonas said getting up he took her hand in his and they walked back to the house. 

************************************************************************** 

~In their room~ 

Jonas came out of the bathroom to see Sammi changed. She had on her jeans and her tank top. She was bending over her bed trying to find her other sneaker. She heard him come out and when he didn't saw anything she asked," What?" 

"Nothing. I was just admiring the view. What are you looking for?" He asked starting to blush but he didn't care...he was on cloud nine. 

"My sneaker. Help, I think my bed ate it." She said trying not to blush herself. 

Jonas got down on the floor and looked, "Found it." 

Sammi got up to fast and got a little dizzy and fell right into his arms. 

He smiled. She smiled and said, " If we keep this up were going to have to walk around here naked. Come on, I want to shop and I'm starved. I need food!" She said as she got up. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

"I'm bored." 

"How nice for you." 

Ryan had for the last three hours been trying to mimic her face into the pictures that where placed before her. At first she was dong pretty good but now the faces were looking less and less like the pictures. Her ADD had kicked in and, well, she just couldn't concentrate anymore. 

She had long given up on this whole thing being some sort of nightmare a long time ago. She would have woken up by now if it had. So she was stuck with her new "friends", and she had never met a more boring bunch of losers in her entire life. 

"How about we try something new." Mystique suggested because she too was bored with this little game. "How about we go to the mall and have some fun?" 

Ryan looked at Mystique with a huge smile. "Mall ! Shopping! Say no more I am so there." 

"Good...because frankly my dear, your current attire smells horribly. This will also give you a good chance to try out your powers on live specimen." 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Maria got out of her room wearing her T-shirt and blue shorts. "That feels a little better." Maria said to herself as she glanced around. "Now, where's the garage?" 

***** 

Cara looked around for anyone to borrow a shirt from. Ahead, she saw Amanda and Jean staring at each other. "Excuse me?" Cara asked as Jean and Amanda glanced at her. "I need to borrow a shirt. Mine is covered in blood and we're going to the mall." 

"The mall?" Amanda asked excited. 

"Yeah, can you get Leilee to the garage? Scott 'volunteered' to take us there." 

"Sure!" Amanda said excited as she ran to her room to get changed. 

Jean looked down at Cara and said, "I think I have a some old shirts that might fit you or I can get Jubilee or Paige to get you something." 

"Thanks. Ummm... I also need a pair of sunglasses for my eyes." 

"You can ask Jubilee. She has a pair." 

**Maria Cline**

**_===Later, At the Mall===_**

Jonas stood next to Sammi as she was looking at some clothes... he had already picked out some clothes including a new brown leather jacket. 

He could not be happier, or rather this was the happiest day of his life. 

But not far away evil was plotting some interesting plans. 

====== 

"Well... see any thing you like?" Mystique asked her young friend. 

"You keeping count so far?" Ryan asked. 

"Yes, not too hard; two dogs, a cat." Mystique answered smiling. 

"And a turtle." Ryan smiled and pointed to the stool at a table a bit away. 

Ryan suddenly noticed Jonas and Sammi who were smiling and talking. She suddenly remembered her last boyfriend... 

"I'm not happy, why should they be, or rather why should he be." Ryan said planing to turn the young man in to a small ugly bird, but something didn't work right. 

====== 

Jonas, clenched down his teeth...something was wrong...his stomach hurt like crazy, no, his whole body hurt... 

He looked down at his hands and saw them slowly turning a shade of Green and gray... 

Sammi looked at him scared. "Jonas what is happening?" she yelled and grabbed his shoulder. 

"No..." he yelled out in a terrified voice, which sounded deeper then before. 

He started to run for the exit, as people around him started to scream... 

====== 

Mystique looked puzzled at Ryan. "What did you do to him?" 

"I don't know. I think I only triggered some change that was already there." 

====== 

Everyone started to run outside... they gasped. 

Outside stood a big green/gray Dragon, that looked rather confused. 

Amanda gasped. "It's Jonas..." 

====== 

**Admiral**

Maria was having a fun time at the mall. She had bought a couple new pairs of blue jeans, three T-shirts, and a couple of hats. Suddenly, everyone around her started screaming and a cold feeling of fear clenched at her heart. Did anyone suspect her of being a mutant? 

On instinct, she turned invisible and ran toward the exit. Outside, stood a giant dragon with green/blue skin. 

She ran unseen toward Amanda who said, "It's Jonas." 

"WHAT?!" Maria yelled out in shock as she turned visible. 

The dragon grimaced as everyone else held their ears. 

Scott looked around to see that everyone else is still here. "Okay," he said as he went toward the dragon. "Jonas, this is Scott. Remember?" 

The dragon nodded. 

"Good. Just try to remain calm and stay still." 

"You guys?" Jubilee asked, "In case you might not notice but the police and maybe the Avengers will be coming by. We gotta hide him!" 

"How?!" Sammi exclaimed as she went toward Jonas. "He can't turn invisible like Maria." 

"Maybe, he can." Scott said as he looked around for Maria. "Maria, go to Jonas and try to turn him invisible like yourself. If you can turn your clothes invisible, maybe you can turn other objects invisible too." 

"Okay. Like the Invisible Woman, cool." Maria said as she turned visible again. 

Amanda gasped as she said, "Hurry! The police and the military's coming!" 

Maria swallowed as she put her hand on Jonas's leg and focused. She had read the Fantastic Four for a long time and knew Susan Richards' powers well. The dragon vanished before everyone's eyes. "Okay, I think I did it." 

**Maria Cline**

Ryan smiled at her handiwork. It didn't turn out the way she wanted it to but the outcome was the same. The happy little couple was no longer happy. 

Mystique on the other had was not smiling. 

"You're supposed to change them into weak helpless little things...not gigantic monsters!" 

"Hey! I went for a bird, he on the other hand had different plans." 

**Le Fae**

"Now what are we suppose to do, Scott?" Sammi asked looking where Jonas and Maria were standing. 

"I don't know. Jonas and Maria stay out of the way and hidden. I'm going to call for help. The rest of you try to act normal inside. I don't want to draw any attention to the rest of you." Scott said slipping into leader mode. 

"I don't want to leave him." Sammi said trying not to cry. 

"It's O.K. They'll be fine. Come on. You still need to get clothes and We're not helping standing out here." Jubilee said as she put an arm around Sammi. 

Sammi looked back at where she last saw them and mouthed something she never thought she would say at a time like this, but she thought that it would help, maybe. She mouthed, "I love you." Then Jubilee was leading her back inside. 

**jubilee_79**

He Wanted to run after her, scream out to her... but he had to stay here not to move... hi didn't understand any thing. 

Maria was surprised that it was not hard to keep them both invisible. 

Rogue arrived quick... and grabbed Scott. "Is he ok?" afraid that Jonas might have been hurt. 

"Eh, well I think he is ok... more or less... he has somehow turned in to a... well, a Dragon, we have to get him back to the mansion." 

"Quickly." Sammi was quick to add. 

Rogue blinked and looked at Sammi, then at Scott. "A Dragon?" 

====== 

Jonas instinctively started to flap his big wings as Rogue, now also invisible, lifted him off the ground and started to carefully fly to the mansion, she had to be careful he could probably not fly if she dropped him. 

People started to look around as the invisible Dragon let out a deep roaring yell and his kicking in the air flipped over a car. 

"Stay still will ya." Rogue said and tried to hold onto him, this was going to be a long flight. 

A little later there was a knock on the door at the mansion... Wolverine opened and found himself face to face with a gigantic Dragon. 

He blinked... "Dragon? nah." he closed the door again. "Dragon?" 

"DRA... GON?!?" Jonas surprised every one as he roared out the word almost like a Lion. 

"Holy... you can talk?" Cara asked looking up into his eye. 

"I... THINK... SO." He tried carefully, didn't really work as when he talked as a human. 

Sammi almost fainted. "Man that's one bad breath." she teased him glad that he was at least unhurt, Jonas smiled a big Dragon smile and picked Sammi up in a big hand. "BE... NICE." 

"Did a dragon drop in on us too?" Storm said puzzled. 

"No it's Jonas... he changed into a dragon at the mall, strange?" Scott said rubbing his head. 

"He won't be easy to hide..." Logan said an ran his hand through his hair. 

"Do you think you can change back?" Jean asked as Jonas sat Sammi down on the ground. 

"Don't know how I ended up this way in the first place." Jonas said his voice more steady... but still sounded like a Lion. 

"Try to focus on how you looked before." Jean said marveling at the incredible Dragon. 

"I will try." he concentrated and suddenly he started to slowly change in to a human form, but suddenly he went back into the dragon form. 

"It's hard, but I think I can do it... but I need to rest." he said breathing in a long heavy breath. 

"It's probably too soon after the last change." Jean said. 

"Guess you can't come inside... it's a little too small." Logan laughed but stopped as he saw the face on the rather big Dragon. 

"Looks like it's under the stars tonight for you." Amanda said grinning from ear to ear. 

"You should take the time to test what you can do... you never know...a dragon might be useful sometimes." 

====== 

Jonas lay on the grass... looking up at the sky, it was a rather interesting sensation... he could smell things he never could before... hear people talking in the house. 

He could see excellent in the dark... and he could even fly a little now, ok only hover some meters off the ground... 

"Having fun?" Sammi asked and rested herself on one of his large legs, looking into one of his eyes. 

"Thinking." he said in a voice low, a low rumbling sound followed the words. 

"I think I can change in to a human, but I kinda would like to stay like this for tonight... it's interesting, is that ok." he asked carefully. 

Sammi shrugged. "Why ask, as long as you think can change back, it's your choice." Sammi sat down beside him. "Mind if I stay?" 

"Was afraid to ask, but I would really Love it if you stayed." he took a deep breath. 

"Do you think you can breathe fire?" Sammi teased him. 

====== 

**Admiral**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

"We cannot afford for you to make any more mistakes like that again!!" 

Ryan had been listening to Sinister and Mystique yell at her for about an hour now. She was getting very tired of it. Scooby over there laughing at her wasn't helping things either. 

"I knew you should have just let me gut the girl after that trick she pulled in training today." 

"Gesh-ka-ma-doodle! What is with you and wanting to gut me fur ball! I think you got some morbid S&M fantasy going on here." 

"What did you just say?" Mystique asked with a surprised expression on her face. 

"Fur ball has a weird S&M fixation. Don't you think?" 

"No, not that, the first part. Do you know how strange it is to hear a person who has dreadlocks, a tattoo and more piercings then I care to know about say "Gesh-ka-ma-doodle"? You really are crazy aren't you?" 

"I don't like to swear." 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

He sighed happy, as he could hear the now sleeping Sammi breathe slowly beside him, under an open sky, even if he was right now an over 40-foot long dragon. 

The wind was blowing up, it was not too cold but he extended one of his new wings to act as a windshield around Sammi. 

/I will do any thing I can to protect you, from whatever may bring you harm./ he thought. 

Looking over to her he lowered his big head close and whispered softly even if she seemed to be asleep, he could not wait to say the words until she woke up. 

"I love you too." He would like nothing but to kiss her... but then again, he *WAS* a Dragon. Not the best kisser in the world, and considering he would most likely end up naked if he manage to change back to a human, that was not really a good idea at the moment either. 

He rested his head down and closed his eyes. 

Sammi smiled, she had heard him... 

**Admiral**

Cara could not sleep... She looked over at the sleeping Leilee, and decided that waking her up just to talk would be a bad idea... considering her powers and all, what if she was a grouchy riser? 

She got up as quietly as she could, and went into the bathroom to change into her uniform. 

She emerged a few minutes later, and silently slipped out the door of their room... walking in the direction of the Danger Room. 

/Gambit can't train me right now, and even if he could, he probably wouldn't. Not after what I did to him. I still need to train, though... even if it's on my own./ she grimly thought. 

She arrived at the Control Room, and looked down at the controls. They didn't look that hard to figure out; if she set the controls on the lowest setting, maybe she could actually get through this "session" alive. 

She started fiddling with the controls... 

"Let's see...what holographic training program should I use? They sure use weird file names here. I wonder what 'SNTNLGRVGMBT1' stands for? Well, only one way to find out!" she said, as she selected the file. 

She flipped a few more switches, and the Danger Room was all set. She went out of the control room to the entrance of the Danger Room. The door slid open, and Cara stepped inside. 

********************* 

She gasped as she entered the room... only, it wasn't a room anymore. She was now standing in the middle of a grove of trees. 

"The comic writers weren't kidding about the Shi'ar technology," she said to herself, "This place definitely looks real... it's absolutely beautiful!" 

She turned herself all the way around, enjoying the breathtaking scenery...completely lost in the moment. The setting sun glowed in the tree-tops...just then, Cara noticed something else that was glowing, just behind the tree-tops. Two VERY BIG, VERY RED EYES... 

"HALT, MUTANT..." said a very deep, loud, mechanical voice, "YOU WILL BE..." 

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" shrieked Cara, drowning out the rest of the Sentinal's statement. 

***************** 

**Rainfall**

Maria tossed and turned as she tried to force herself to sleep. It was hard to sleep in a strange room let alone a strange universe. "Oh my ---, I'm a mutant." Maria muttered as she turned invisible and crept out of the room with her uniform. 

A handy asset of invisibility is the fact that she can change without anyone seeing anything. She slipped on her long gloves and turned visible again. 

Thoughts plagued her mind as usual when things grew too quiet. Will she ever come back home? Does her family know where she is? Tears came to her eyes as she bent her head down. In a way, she felt like Havok does in the comics. A part of her begged to tell Cyclops about Havok's true fate. After all, wouldn't her sister want to know where she really is? 

She wandered to the kitchen where she looked in the refrigerator. On the lower half, there were several cases of beer, tofu and an assortment of other items. She looked up in the freezer where there were several boxes of ice cream. "Yes!" Maria said as she took out a box of Rocky Road and a bowl with a spoon. 

"Hey, petite. You don't wanna get fat in spandex." a voice said smoothly. 

Maria turned invisible and looked at a certain man with red eyes. "Oh, hi Gambit. What are you doing up?" 

"I'm just getting a snack before I go out to de Danger Room. Get some energy out." 

"Oh." Maria said as she took the ice cream scoop and started scooping the ice cream in the bowl. 

"What's a matter?" Gambit asked as he watched the ice cream vanish in mid air. 

"I'm homesick." Maria admitted, "And... I want to do something but I can't. I mean, well... I know some things that may or may not be true and well... I ah... what would you do if you know something that might benefit one world but devastate another?" 

"Que? You know something about de X-Men that we don't know about?" 

"It's not about the X-Men. It's about one of it's members. Not you. And another person close to the X-Men. Nothing evil or anything like that. I want to tell but it might be wrong." 

"Maybe, I'm not de best person to ask. What about Cable? He knows things dat he didn't want anyone else would know. He's coming by tomorrow to help out with de dimensional thing." 

"Cable?!" Maria said excited, "Cool!" 

"You like him?" 

"I think he's kinda cute." 

"Cute?" 

"Yeah." 

"Cute?!" 

"I think he is." 

"CUTE?!" 

****** 

**Maria Cline**


	5. Reality Bites-Part 5

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel. All non-Marvel Characters belong to the writers of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**Reality Bites--part 5**

While the others were out and about, Amanda decided to have a talk with Xavier. She had been slightly worried about what happened at the mall and the presence she sensed. She had telepathically asked Xavier to meet her outside. 

"Is there something wrong, Amanda." Xavier asked as he approached. 

"You're actually ' talking ' to me?" she replied. 

Xavier looked at her slightly puzzled. Amanda hated teasing him, but he was cute when he was confused. She also knew that now wasn't the time to be flirty. 

"I sensed something at the mall, just before Jonas changed. It was the same feeling that I got every time one of us appeared. I think someone else has been brought through and I don't think that she/he is too friendly." 

"I'll have Hank look in on it." Xavier replied authoritively. He turned around to leave when... 

"Do you have to go?" asked Amanda. 

"Why do you ask?" he questioned. 

"Well, I have a hard time falling a sleep when I'm in a strange place, so I was wondering if you could give me a..a.. tour."She replied nervously. 

"At this time at night?" he asked warmly. The acceptance in his eyes. 

"Well, why not?" she replied sheepishly. 

Xavier indicated the path he wanted her to follow. 

/This is so cool,/ she thought. /I'm definitely going to change my favorite's list./ 

**A.C.**

**_==Danger Room==_**

Cara leapt out of the way, throwing herself headfirst into the bushes... just barely avoiding getting blasted by the Sentinal's red laser beam. 

She crashed out the other side of the bushes, ducked and rolled, trying to get away from the giant hands that were coming ever closer to catching her. 

/If I can just get behind it,/ she thought frantically. 

Once again she jumped out of the way of the Sentinal's swinging hand, and leapt onto a tall boulder which stood off to the side of the Sentinal...thinking that she could jump from it and land behind the Sentinal. 

But, she slipped on a loose rock, and fell into the waiting hands of the Giant. She still had one arm free though, and quickly whipped one of her poker chips out of her coat...she charged it, aimed, and let fly! She threw her free arm over her face, to protect herself from the resulting blast... 

The small plastic disk met the Sentinal's neck with a thundering crash, effectively separating the Sentinal's head from its body, and it started to fall. 

Cara shrieked as the Sentinal fell, it was still clutching her tightly. 

First it's body met the ground, then it's arms...Finally, it's hands fell to the ground, almost as if it were all happening in slow motion. 

Cara nearly fainted as she saw the ground hurtling towards her.../This is really going to hurt!/ she thought grimly... 

The shock from the impact shot through her body, as the giant hand that held her finally made contact with the ground. It bounced once, then came to a complete rest, and all was still once more. 

"ooohhh," Cara gave a quiet moan. "that really hurt..." 

She tried to move, but she was still stuck in the Sentinal's grasp... and she couldn't get free! 

"I guess I'm going to be stuck like this til morning... won't that be a big laugh! Oh well, at least I was able to take down the 'mighty sentinal'. Huh... it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be!" she thought, smiling to herself... 

Her gloating was interrupted however, by FOUR PAIRS OF GIANT RED, GLOWING EYES appearing in the tree tops... 

Four more Sentinals emerged from the trees, all reaching for Cara... she screamed as the Giant hands hovered over her... 

****************

"ZING!!" Two glowing objects hurtled through the air, and crashed into two of the Sentinals... blowing them both apart. 

The two remaining Sentinals stood up straight, and looked in the direction where the attack had come from. Cara looked too, as well as she was able. What she saw took her completely by surprise...Because there stood Gambit! 

"Never fear, Mon Petit'... For Gambit is HERE!" He said, winking at the bewildered girl. 

He turned his attention to the two Sentinals... "Why don't you fight Gambit instead?" He said, "He make a more interesting target, Non?" 

The Sentinals left the shaken girl, and went after the "more interesting target". 

They didn't have a chance though...For Gambit knew this training session inside and out. He could go through it with his eyes closed. Needless to say, it was all over for the Sentinals in a matter of moments. 

As soon as the last Sentinal fell, the Danger Room suddenly reverted back to its normal state...The sentinal which held Cara disappeared in a flash of light, and she was left sitting on the cold floor. 

Gambit walked over to the shaking girl, and held out his hand... Cara's red eyes widened in bewilderment. She stared at the outstretched hand for a moment, then, ever-so-cautiously placed her own hand in it. Gambit pulled her gently to her feet. 

"Why did you help me?" asked Cara, staring up into Gambit's eyes..."After what I did..." 

Gambit placed one finger on her lips, silencing her... "Gambit be willing to forgive and forget... Let's jus' start over, Non?" he said softly. He smiled at Cara. 

Cara's eyes were wide... /Is Gambit flirting with me?/ she wondered... all she could do was nod her agreement. 

He smiled and said, "That's mon petit'..." 

He turned from Cara, walked a few steps and bent down to pick up Cara's bo staff from where it had fallen. He handed it to Cara. 

"Now, petit'," He said in a more business-like tone, "Gambit tink's we should begin where we left off... you still need training with your bo..." 

They had just gotten into their fighting stances, when something occurred to Gambit. 

"By the way, mon petit'," he asked, "what did you use to take out dat Sentinal?" 

Cara grinned, and she reached into her coat pocket. She pulled out a blue pokerchip and held it in the air where Gambit could see it. He smiled... 

"You know petit'? Dat uniform is a definate improvement!" He said, winking at Cara. 

/Okay, now I KNOW he's flirting!/ Cara thought, and grinned. 

And they got back into their fighting stances... 

***************

**Rainfall**

**_~Alpha Earth~_**

"I hate this place and wish it would go away. The pain... why won't it end. I can't stand it." 

The straps continue to dig into his forearms. The doctors bustle around the room rechecking the straps on my bed. /It's not like I'm gonna kill somebody. I'm a schizo, I'm terminally ill and suicidal not homicidal, well maybe a little. I know if they poke me with a needle one more time I'm gonna rip out their hearts./ 

The I.V. drips continue feeding him the morphine decreasing his pain as he drifts off. The doctors know he won't last through the night. Then there's a bright light and falling.....falling.... 

The mansion shakes as a body impacts the roof setting it on fire. The body tumbles off the side hitting the ground with a sickening smack. The world goes psychedelic as his eyes open. 

"What a trip!" They close once again as he collapses. 

Beast and the others rush the injured man to the medlab. 

"How's the kid doing Hank?" 

"Not good I'm afraid." 

**I'm not a kid!** A voice made up of many calls outta nowhere. 

SNKKT! Logan turns, expecting an attack, only to see the injured man rise up and pull away the sensors and tubes from his body. Beast and Wolverine reach to restrain him only to fall through him. 

"Leave us alone." 

"US?" 

**Chaos**

**_~Outside~_**

Jonas stretched out and yawned... it probably looked rather amusing to see a 40 foot long Dragon stretch like a cat and extend it's wing's to the full wingspan, over 70 feet wide. Rocking his jaw a little and smacking his lips, there was a rather strange taste in his mouth. 

/Dragon morning breath?/ Jonas thought and could not resist a rumbling laugh. 

Sammi blinked... /What was that?/ 

"Hello, sleep well?" Jonas said with a smile looking down at the newly awoken Sammi. "I was about to try and fly back to the mansion and see if I can change back, join me?" Jonas said eager, but a little sad, hoping that he could change back to a dragon later. 

"Are you sure you can use your wings?" Sammi asked and looked at him skeptically. 

**_~Garden~_**

"You are a quick learner." Xavier said rather impressed. 

(Thanks.) Amanda said tiredly, they had been practicing for hours and she was starting to get a little dizzy. 

Amanda decided that she would maybe take another step here, but something yelled for them both. 

"Out of the way, Out of the WAAAAY!!!" Sammi and Jonas yelled out in unison. Jonas tried to come in for a landing... holding Sammi carefully in his hands. 

"Is that... Jonas." Xavier said marveling at the Animal hurtling down at their position, Xavier had not seen him before. 

"Yes and he is coming in way too quick, MOVE." 

Amanda and Xavier got out of the way just in time. Jonas plunged into the ground headfirst, digging into the ground... and for a moment seemed to stand on his head... before slowly flipping over on his back. 

"Umpfe..." he let out. And shook his head trying to clear his big head. 

Sammi sat down beside him... rather dizzy. "Next time I ask if you can do something like that... don't try to impress me if it will make you crash." she said and put her head in her hands. 

Jonas spit out some dirt that had been scooped up in his big mouth. 

"Then don't ask it of me." he said a grin on his lips. 

The large crash had awoken everyone in the mansion, and Jonas looked at them upside down as them came out from the mansion. 

"What?" he asked as the looked at him with big eyes. "Never seen a dragon crash land before?" 

**Admiral**

"O.K. Show's over... everyone back inside. I need a certain Dragon to change back." Sammi said trying to look mad, but that bloody smile just wouldn't stop. Then she realized that Jonas' clothes were shreds and said, "Wait, Gambit. Come here." 

He walked over a little afraid. "What you need Gambit for petit'?" 

She looked around him and said, "Go, I only need him for a second. He'll be unharmed, I promise." 

Everyone went inside. 

When she knew they were all gone she said to a very curious Gambit, " I need your coat." 

"Why, petit?" 

"Because his clothes are shredded. And I need him to change back now. So give me your coat." 

"Sure thin', petit." Gambit handed her the coat and said, "Dat be all?" 

"Yah, thanks." She said and he went back inside. 

When they were the only ones left outside, she turned to Jonas who was now standing right. "You can turn back, right?" 

"I can try." 

"Please do it for me." She said with a smile. 

**jubilee_79**

"O.K. Show's over, everyone back inside. I need a certain Dragon to change back." Sammi said. "Wait, Gambit. Come here." 

He walked over. "What you need Gambit for petit'?" 

She looked around him and said, "Go I only need him for a second. He'll be unharmed. I promise." 

Everyone went inside. 

Cara had run outside at the same time as Gambit... they had still been in the Danger Room when they heard the crash... 

/Is Jonas going to turn back into a human? Cool!/ she thought, as she turned and went inside. 

It was interesting knowing a talking dragon, but... she missed Jonas more as a human. 

/Sammi and Jonas sure make a cute couple,/ Cara thought, smiling as she remembered them by the broken tree. 

She made her way to her room, very slowly... her three hour workout with Gambit had left her feeling quite sore. 

She entered her room, walked up to her bed, and sprawled out on it width-wise not bothering to change or anything... she was fast asleep as soon as she hit the mattress. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Outside~_**

Jonas Took a deep breath, filled his large dragon chest with air, and concentrated... PAIN... red pain deep inside somewhere, he screamed or roared in a voice that must have been heard for miles, before he slowly began to change back in to a human form. 

The large wings folded in to his back, the horns grew back into his head, and the gray, lizard looking skin started to revert back to a normal human skin. 

He fell down to his knees, It was over, he was a human again, but that pain... he felt a little stiff and he could not stop shaking as the pain faded went away. 

**Admiral**

"Oh Jonas, I'm so sorry. I didn't think. I should have realized that it would hurt you." Sammi said. 

"Are you O.K.?" She asked as she put the coat around him. She kneeled down next to him and put her arms around him. 

"Why did you want me back in human form so bad?" Jonas asked, putting his arms around her. 

She pulled back from the hug and looked into his eyes and said, "Because I really wanted to do this." She leaned her head in and kissed him. 

**jubilee_79**

**********

"Now that's a roar." Logan said and blinked as they heard the pain filled roar as Jonas had changed. 

"He could be hurt... should we not go out and check on him?" Scott asked and started to walk for the door. 

Jean stopped him, Xavier and Amanda looked at Jean with understanding. 

"I think he is ok..." Jean said and looked at Scott. 

Sammi pulled away from the kiss, blushing not nearly as red as Jonas. 

"I... I..." he stuttered. /I'm in heaven./ he thought. 

Sammi looked in to his eyes. "I heard you last night..." she said with a smile. 

Jonas eyes widened. "But... you were sleeping?" 

Sammi shook her head. 

He smiled. "I heard you at the mall, I wanted to call to you but... I had to stay quiet."Jonas placed his hands on each side of her face and kissed her again, feeling her arms snake around him pulling him close. 

"You know I would love to stay here all day, but it's a little embarrassing to sit here dressed only in a coat." Jonas said, turning red again. 

======~sigh~ :)

**Admiral**

**_~Med Lab~_**

-------------------------  
^=next personality ------------------------- 

"Who are you and where am I?" The young man staggers back falling through the bed. 

"Calm down son. What's your name and the last thing you remember?" 

"Needles, morphine, lights and then pain. That's nothing new though...I'm pretty used to pain. I'm..." 

^Don't tell them anything Jamar. They only want to hurt you and do more tests.^ 

He begins to shake his head trying to clear his thoughts. The sudden movement makes Wolverine edgy. 

"Calm down kid!" 

"DON'T CALL ME KID!!!" Jamar screams. Shards of ice begin jutting up from the floor between him and Wolverine. 

/Jean!/ 

**Yes Logan!?** 

/The new kid's about to pop./ 

Jean begins to scan the room. What she finds inside the young man's mind makes her cringe. There is a sea of boiling emotions overflowing in his head. 

**Jamar calm down!** 

"Who said that?" 

**I did.** At that moment a red-headed lady enters the room followed by a blonde who looks like a model out of Frederick's of Hollywood. 

**Just calm down. We're here to help you.** 

He takes a step and falls down, unconscious. Jean looks over at Emma. 

"What!?" Emma said. "It was taking a bit longer your way so I improvised." 

**Chaos**

Maria slowly got out of her bedroom. "Oh... my head. Mental note, never eat a bowl of ice cream in the middle of the night." 

She put on her new clothes and walked down to the med lab. 

Suddenly, she saw Emma and Jean running toward the med lab. Invisible, Maria followed them praying that it was nothing serious. 

She entered the room to see another guy lying on the floor dazed and confused. "Who is he?" Maria asked Jean. 

Jean blinked and replied, "We founded him on the grounds. He could be another lost one. Turn visible and talk to him. He might trust you." 

**Maria Cline**

Leilee walked into the room, barefoot and dressed in only a large teeshirt that reached her knees, having just woken up. Her long brown hair was pulled up into a ponytail, and she was rubbing the sand out of her her brown eyes. "Hey. everyone. Wassup?" 

She stretched slightly and walked over to the door. After taking a couple deep breaths, she grinned and called out, "S'about time, you guys!" With that said, she turned back to Cyclops and Xavier. "Um....guys? I still need a costume and a mentor. So, Xavy, who's gonna train me? Is he cute? When am I gonna meet him?" 

**Leilee**

**_~Danger Room~_**

"Come on, is that the best you can do." Jonas said sweat running down his face. 

Two glowing red eyes appeared out of nowhere followed by a devil smile. 

"Not even close, mon ami." Gambit lashes out and hurls a glowing card that strikes the ground behind Jonas, sending him flying forward and tumbling around. 

Without time to recover, Gambit brings down his bo staff for the kill. (All he needs to do is touch him on the face.) 

Something Glimmers in the light, and stops his bo only and inch from Jonas' face, Gambit smiles approvingly. 

"Cat got your tongue?" Jonas said as he shoved away Gambit's bo and flew to a standing position. 

"Gambit still think it's something out from a comedy movie, no one fight's with a hockey stick. Non?" Gambit was swinging his bo in one hand. 

"Maybe, but it saved me, didn't it." Jonas smiled and was feeling a little cocky. They had been fighting for a long time, Gambit had not been able to touch. 

"Oh, well, will it save you now?" Gambit jumped around in a serious of movement that was so complex that Jonas had no way of telling what he was doing. 

Suddenly he landed on his feet, his back turned to Jonas. 

"What was that good for?" Jonas asked forgetting himself and lowering his guard. 

"I needed some things." Gambit turned around and his hands threw a collection of small stones at him. 

Unprepared, Jonas backed of as they exploded around him. 

Gambit was not late to take the advantage, kneeling down and driving his bo in to the back of Jonas knees flipping him over. 

"Damnnnnnn!" Jonas said as he lost foothold and fell back, and was about to fly away when... 

"Hello Mon ami." Gambit said looking in to his eyes. 

"Oops." Jonas said and saw the end of the bow come down in his forehead. 

"Gambit wins, Non?" Gambit said smiling wide, as Jonas hovered back to his feet, instinctively rubbing his forehead, not that it really hurt. 

"Careful or I'll turn in to a Dragon and eat you." Jonas said. 

**_~Control Room~_**

Cara watched from the control room with Rogue and Hank. 

"He is getting better, but he has a real problem maneuvering at high speed flight." Rogue said scratching her neck. 

"He's showing massive signs of improvement, probably much thanks to the weapon he asked me to make for him." Hank said, proud that he had manage to create the strong metal hockey stick that Jonas had requested, when asked if his needed some sort of equipment. 

But Hank was more impressed about Jonas' new uniform that he had constructed, when Jonas had changed back into human form and found that the old uniform didn't work. 

The new uniform was Blue and Black with lots of metal pads and lines; it was designed to split up in segments if he ever changed in to a dragon, then reassemble into the uniform again when he returned to human form. Jonas had requested that Hank add some metal shoulder, knee and elbow pads for style. 

The uniform looked really sci-fi, Hank had asked if he should paint it black and add some blinking lights. 

**_~Danger Room~_**

Jonas snapped the hockey stick to the magnetizing holding on his back, oh this was a cool uniform. 

Losing to Gambit didn't seem all that bad any more, but then again, the world could come to an end right now and he would still be happy. 

/Sammi./ he thought and took a deep breath. 

"Who is next?" Gambit said but was cut off as the speakers sounded. 

*Everyone report to medlab* 

**Admiral**

(What is going on?) Amanda sent out telepathically. 

(It would seem we have another visitor from your world.) replied Xavier. 

(Well, dont let Logan greet him or you'll have a destroyed med-lab to go with you war room.) 

(I am afraid they have already met.) 

(I'll be right there!) 

Amanda entered the med-lab, to see shards of ice and flames of fire everywhere. In the center of it was a young man who looked like he wasn't all there. /You'd think they would be able to handle this better,/ thought Amanda. 

(Hello. My name is Amanda.) she sent out towards the boy. 

Before she could hear the professor's warning to stay out of his head, she was hit by a wave of confusing thoughts and images. The pain from the outburst was so intense, Amanda found herself falling under it as a horrified scream escaped her lips. Her last thought was that this boy was going to be trouble. 

**A.C.**

"This is a war zone!" Jonas yelled as he entered the medlab... he was quick to grab Amanda and pulled her out the door and handed her to Gambit. 

"Leave us alone!!" the young man in the center of the room screamed out. 

Jonas looked in to see if there was any one else. 

Jean, Emma and Logan were locked up to the wall with a thick layer of ice. 

"I'm going to get them out." Jonas said and rushed into the medlab. 

"Jonas, wait!" Rogue yelled out but was thrown aside when a layer of ice covered the door. 

**Admiral**

Jonas ran to the block of ice and started to smash with his gloved hands. 

"Need help?" a voice asked. 

"Sure." Jonas said as he stepped aside. 

Maria reappeared and screamed at the block of ice. The ice cracked and shattered as the boy threw up another ice wall where Maria was. Logan, Jean, and Emma lay on the floor. 

Jonas pulled Maria to the side. "Thanks." Maria said as she turned invisible again. "You guys okay?" 

"We're fine." Logan said as he helped Jean up. 

Jean focused and said, "I'm getting Bobby here. He should help out." 

"Leave us alone!" 

"STOP REPEATING YOURSELF!" Maria boomed as she began shattering ice all over the place. 

**Maria Cline**

Sammi came running from her room when she got the message. "I hope I'm not too late." She said to herself she had a gut feeling that someone was hurt. She picked up her speed as she came around the corner. She saw Emma and asked, "Emma What is happing?" 

"One of your 'friends' is going berserk." She replied with her usual coolness. As Sammi got closer she saw Gambit but didn't see Jonas. /They were training together, where could he be?/ she thought. The feeling of danger got stronger. /Oh no. Oh please. Oh please. Don't let anyone be in there./ She thought as she heard Maria scream. /Damn.../ She pushed her way through the crowd. 

"Sammi, Don't!" Cara yelled as she passed. 

"I'll be fine, they need serious help." Sammi said not even stopping. She got to the door and took a defensive stance. She saw Jonas and Maria on one side and the others making their way slowly towards the door. 

"Be careful, Darlin'." Logan said as they we safely out of the room. 

She slowly crept along the wall making her way towards Jonas and Maria. When she was standing behind them she looked up to see someone she hadn't seen in years. "Jamar?" 

**jubilee_79**

Leilee, not hearing what Sammi said, ran forward, reaching out with her power. /No... Not there... not there... THERE!/ She pressed slightly, forcing the brain to release large amounts of Serotonin, calming the boy. His tantrum quickly lost wind and he sagged back on the hospital bed. 

She then slowly walked forward, gently placing her arm around him. "Shhh.... It's ok.... calm down. We won't hurt you...." She rocked him back and forth in a slow, steady rhythm. 

Jamar opened his eyes. "Hi Sammi," He whispered softly before falling fast asleep, leaning on Leilee's shoulder. 

**Leilee**

Leilee held Jamar a few moments more; then laid him gently back down on the bed. She reached out with her hand and brushed his hair away from his forehead... then turned and looked at the others. 

Cara stood in the doorway, her worried eyes taking in the scene... she wanted to be able to help, but she didn't know what she could do. She felt helpless in these situations. She frowned and looked down; and noticed that the ice had melted, making several puddles of water on the floor. She absentmindedly trailed her foot through one, swishing it back and forth. 

Beast noticed Cara's dejected expression. He understood how she was feeling, and decided that she needed something to do to take her mind off of it. 

He surveyed the puddles of water, then said, "Cara, would you please go find a mop and a bucket? We need to clean up this water before someone slips and gets hurt." 

Cara was puzzled; but she turned around and went in search of a mop and bucket as Beast had asked. 

**Rainfall**

When everything had quieted down and after they moved Jamar to a room (being that the med lab was destroyed), everyone moved to the kitchen to discuss what happened. As they were walking, Jonas and Sammi lagged behind. She was holding his hand and wasn't about to let it go. She was thinking about Jamar and how the last time she saw him was when their foster parents had him locked in that hell hole they called a Psychiatric Hospital. That was the night she ran away to live in the mall. She snapped out of her thoughts when she realized that they had stopped walking and Jonas had asked her something. 

"What? I'm sorry, I was thinking." Sammi said looking into his eyes. She saw hurt and flinched a little and thought, /Did I cause that?/ 

"I asked you, How do you know him?" He said praying that he wasn't her boyfriend back home. 

"Jamar and I lived at the same foster house when I was a kid. He was my best friend and I was his. I was the only one who could deal with him. He has MPD or as I always called it Mulitple Peeps. When we were 13 our 'parents' thought it would be better for him in a mental ward. I didn't so when they had him put away, I ran away. That's when I ended up living in the mall. I haven't seen him in over 7 years." Sammi said not taking her eyes off him. 

"Wow. And now he's brought here. You're worried about him aren't ya?" Jonas said as he saw the saddness in her eyes. 

"Ya, I don't want to leave him alone. I did that once, I don't want to do that again, ever." She said. 

"You Love him, don't you?" Jonas said. He was hurt he could tell by her voice that she cared for Jamar. 

Sammi looked at him for a moment, then realizing what he meant she said," Ya, like a brother. I Love you. And only you." And she kissed him. 

**jubilee_79**

Cara sat at the kitchen table; the conversation from the others milled around her, but she didn't say anything... she only listened. She was deep in thought as she looked at the hat she held in her hands. She had found it in the utility closet when she went to get a mop... 

It was simply an old, blue fisherman's hat that looked like it had seen better days... nothing special really, but it held interest for Cara. Because it looked like her dad's favorite hat... it seemed almost a connection to what she had left behind... 

She placed the hat on the table, took a handful of poker chips out of her coat pocket, and began to play tiddly-winks... 

**Rainfall**

Jonas watched carefully as Hank inserted the I.V. in the boy's arm, memories coming to the surface. 

A hospital bed... green robes... scalpels... he swallowed, years of pain and suffering, it may have saved his life, but what was left after was a ruined shell that had taken years to heal. 

And it was not until now that it was finally a closed wound, and even now, it hurt, always would. 

He hugged back on Sammi's hand and looked at her with understanding. 

"What is wrong, why do you give him that." Jonas asked Hank sadly. 

"I'm afraid the boy is ill, I'm not sure from what." Hank said and stood up. 

Jonas fingers trail down to the back of his hand still holding Sammi, rubbing his fingertips over it. 

Something was screaming inside him to leave here, his entire body wanted to run away, as when he was a boy strapped to a bed in a surgical room, seeing the black rubber mask come down on his face. 

There was something about this young man that made him feel as if he had been through the same thing... maybe worse. 

Jonas felt and obligation to help him, not only for the fact that he was like a brother to Sammi... but for the fact that he looked like someone that had spent a long time strapped to a hospital bed. 

"He looks so peaceful." Maria said carefully. 

"Yeah, but I believe that on the inside... what you would consider peaceful, is for him simply to give in to the pain." Jonas spoke from the heart before he realized it. 

It was surprising that memories could hurt this much, physically hurt, there was a pain in his stomach and he felt sick. 

"I need to sit down." Jonas said and staggered quickly finding a chair to sit in. 

"You ok?" Sammi asked concerned. 

"Yeah, bad memories that's all... Bad memories." 

**Admiral**


	6. Reality Bites-Part 6

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.

**

Reality Bites--part 6

**

Leilee, on the other hand, was in the corner of a closet, with her knees pulled up to her chest, crying, rocking back and forth. Her head hurt. The different personalities had fought her manipulations and given her a migraine as a lovely parting gift. She wanted her mom. And her dad, and even her annoying little brothers. Softly into the darkness surrounding her, she whispered, "I wanna go home." 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

While the others were attending Jamar, Xavier and Jean had to relieve Amanda from the psychic shock. After giving her a sympathetic smile, Jean had left to check on the others. She knew that this would be hard on them and they would need to talk to someone. Xavier stayed behind. 

(If your going to give me one of your power lectures, you can forget it. I already have a headache.) Amanda telepathically told Xavier. 

(I thought after what you had just experienced you would not be to willing to use your powers.) 

(Well, it's like falling off a horse, you have to get back up.) 

( I can sense your concern for the others, but I can tell you that they're all right. I can call them if you would like.) 

(No. They wouldn't want to see me.) 

(I'm sure they care about how you're feeling.) 

(I doubt that. We haven't really bonded. I know it's my fault. I'm just not good with connecting with people. Some part of me wants to get to know them, but I just can't find a way in. I guess that a little boring, probably think I'm a snob. It happens to me all the time. It's funny that I'm the telepath, but I can't connect. You seem the only person I've formed any connection with.) 

(Thank you, but I'm sure you have it all wrong. They would.....) 

(Yes, they would. I told you the problem is me.) 

Amanda gets off the couch and storms outside. 

**A.C.**

Amanda stopped when she got a bit into the forest. 

She needed to think things through, this didn't work out the way she wanted it, she didn't make any real friends, yet all seemed to think she was the leader. She sat down at a tree. 

Something swished past her in high speed... and she thought she heard someone yell out her name, the next sound was a tree falling down. She looked over her shoulder. 

Jonas was standing by a broken tree, cursing obviously but she could not tell what. He looked at Amanda. 

"Hello, didn't think I would find you out here, you distracted me... and well I can't really control my flying if I lose concentration." 

Amanda said nothing, was there anything to say? 

"You alright? Jean said you was ok from... whatever that was that guy did to you." Jonas said still standing at a distance, trying to get her to say something. 

"I'm fine, I heard that Sammi knew the new boy." Amanda said matter of fact. 

"Hey, don't try and change the subject, I can tell something is wrong." Jonas walked close, dusting some dirt off himself. 

"I know that there is some reason you don't hang around us... you should, you're in the lead here." he said and rested against a tree. 

"I don't *hang* around because I don't fit in with you, and I'm no leader." she snapped at him angrily before she could stop herself. 

"You? Don't fit in?" Jonas Laughed. "*You* DON'T fit in, Woman you sure have a weird going on life." Jonas could not help but laugh. 

"Look at you, you are about the only one that do *FIT IN*, you have the brain for this, everyone can see that, and if you don't believe me, ask them." 

Amanda said nothing... how did he dare talk to her like that? 

"When I first came here, it took me two seconds to see who was in command of you people...YOU!" Jonas walked around the tree she was sitting. 

"When I saw you in there, knocked out, I was afraid you might be hurt bad, that would leave us without a boss." Jonas stopped and sat down beside her. 

"I'm scared to death here, not because I am in a strange world, and far from home, but because for the first time in my life I feel that I am home, and I don't wanna lose that." 

He swallowed. "For the first time in my life, I can feel real love and I have a responsibility... to this team." 

"What Team? We are no TEAM! We are a group of people that have ended up in the wrong world, by mistake." Amanda snapped... she didn't want this crap right now. 

He stood up. "That's it! Yell at me, if it will make you feel better, I can take it, why don't you hit me too. I'm sure you have some more anger somewhere in that thick skull of yours, you're the only one that has not hit anything or anyone in the entire team." 

Amanda was angry he was mocking her. 

He sighed. "Look I will leave you to your thinking and self pity, I'm real good at that too, it's easy to feel sorry for yourself, but know this... if you decide to snap out of this and get back to what you are, I will follow your lead." 

Jonas started to walk away. 

**Admiral**

**_~In Jamar's room~_**

"Hank, is he going to be OK?" Sammi asked. 

"I think so. We really don't know what's wrong with him. You know him don't you? We all heard him say your name. Do you know what's wrong?" Hank said crossing the room to where Sammi was standing by the window. 

"I know him. He's like my brother. As to what's wrong with him, well, I haven't seen him in over 7 years. Before that he had multiple personalities and I was the only one who could deal with him. When we were 13 he got put in a mental ward at a state hospital, that could have messed him up really bad." She said to Hank. She wanted to cry but she had to be strong for Jamar. 

"I'm going for a walk." She said, and left. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

She stepped out the back door and heard Jonas's voice. She started walking towards it and heard Amanda. /Maybe I can talk to her. I don't want to bring up any more bad memories for Jonas./ 

She waited till she heard Jonas leave, then continued to walk towards Amanda. She found her sitting by a tree and saw the tree that Jonas had broken in half, and she started to laugh. Amanda heard her. 

"What's so funny?" She asked looking at Sammi. 

"Jonas. He really needs to learn how to stop and land nicely or there are going to be holes and broken down trees everywhere. I wanted to talk to you." Sammi said getting serious. 

"I don't feel like talking." Amanda said. 

" Well too bad, cause I want to tell you something. And you're going to listen, got it, BUB?" Sammi said sitting next to her. 

"Fine." Amanda huffed. 

"What is wrong with you? If it's that you don't want to be our leader, well tuff, cause you are. I was always told that leadership isn't something you ask for, it gets thrust upon you. And You have handled it very well, but you also have to learn to be a leader you have to be part of the team. And whether you like it or not WE are a team and WE need you very badly. If you weren't there when I showed up, the medlab would have been trashed before now and I probably would have been Sammi kabobs if you hadn't got someone to get me to stop fighting Logan. Well, I put in my two-bits. If you need someone to talk to I'm here. I don't have any friends back home and here I'm starting to have too many to count. So I just let you think about what I said, OK?" Sammi said as she got up and started walking back to the house, leaving a very shocked Amanda. 

/She really does talk like Jubilee./ She thought as she watched Sammi walk away. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria quietly went out of the med lab as everyone else is trying to figure out what to do with the latest newcomer. 

It had been two days since she arrived here and fear is starting to settle in. What if she can never go back home? What if she returns still a mutant? What if she does come back, only years passed by? How can she explain to anyone what happened? Is she even here at all? Or is it some dream as a result of a coma? 

Maria went to the living room still invisible and lay down on the sofa. Here she is, a powerful mutant in a comic book-like world being part of the X-Men. "How can I tell them about Havok?" she wondered to herself out loud. She wanted to tell the X-Men all that she knows but for all she knew, she could be wrong. 

She closed her eyes as she maintained her invisibility. It felt much easier to control before and she can cloak other objects. She is special and now she wanted to keep her gifts. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Nathan Summers entered through the front door. He glanced around when he heard about the latest arrival. His father didn't tell him much except that the mutants are from an alternate dimension and needed to get back home. 

He went to the couch and absentmindedly sat down. Suddenly, he heard a ear piercing scream. 

"AAAAHHHH!!! GET OFF OF ME!!!" 

Nathan jumped and turned toward the couch. A girl about twenty years old, with short brown hair and glasses appeared out of nowhere with a definite scowl on her face. 

Cara ran in the living room and asked, "Maria?! You okay?" 

Maria looked up at Cable and said, "I'm fine. It's just that he nearly sat on me. It's my fault though. I was invisible." 

Cable was rubbing his ears and asked, "Let me guess, you're one of the new comers." 

"Yup. I'm Maria. Maria Cline. Wow. You look much bigger in real life. Can I ask you a personal question?" 

"Okay." 

"How does it feel to have a father who's younger than you are?" 

**Maria Cline**

While Cable was entertaining the other two girls with his confusion, Xavier was deciding what they were going to do with their new guest. Xavier had sensed from Amanda, Cara and Maria that they knew more about the X-men then they were telling, especially about Logan and Scott. 

The way the group stared at Scott sometimes unnerved him. They all stared at him as if he were a ghost. Scott himself had complained about it. He could sense that Maria wanted to say something to Scott but ..... maybe he should discussed it with Amanda. 

He had to admit that he was beginning to care slightly for her. She was intelligent, witty, and had a sense of humor he loved, though he would never admit to Bobby that he liked wise guys. He had throughly enjoyed talking with her and sparring with her. She was more talented then he imagined and held her own against him. He had to admit that he had found a kindred spirit in her. 

The fear that went through him when he felt her pain unnerved him. Her despair over her place on the team touched his heart. He knew that these feelings could cause some problems later, but he could not find a reason to deny them. He was also concerned about the presence Amanda had sensed at the mall. 

Could it be another visitor? Somehow Charles felt that this one would not be as pleasant as these others. He was also afraid about what would happen if one of their enemies found out about these guests. He would have to put his own confused feeling aside and talk to Amanda about what she had felt. 

**A.C.**

**_~Outside~_**

/Damn, she is stubborn./ Jonas thought to himself as he thought about turning back and push her until she gave in, but something told him that he should let it rest for now. 

/Ok, what now./ he thought to himself and rested back on the ground. 

Sammi had asked to be alone with Jamar for a time, he had thought that she probably needed that, and he needed some time to think. 

"Ok, first question Jonas, do you wanna stay or go back home." he said to himself. 

He sighed, no matter how much he tried, he didn't want to leave this place, what if they tried to make him... no, deal with that if it comes. 

He yawned, he was tired... when did he get tired, well he had the time to close his eyes for a minute, he quickly fell asleep. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"AAAAHHHH!!! GET OFF OF ME!!!" the scream ran through his head like a hammer, Jonas jerked up right. 

"Oh no." he rumbled, he was a Dragon again. /Must have changed in my sleep./ he thought and remembered a dream about being a Dragon. 

"GREAT." he roared out angrily, he had not tried to change back into a Dragon, he would have to learn how to control it better. 

But right now Maria sounded like she could be in trouble, human or not, he was going to help. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria and Cara were talking to Cable, who found it interesting that the newly arrived seemed to know so much about everything. 

~THUD~ came a sound out side the window. Followed by what sounded to Maria and Cara a familiar growling roar. 

"EEP!!" Cara let out as Cable turned to look out the window, to see a big eye look inside. 

"Maria? Are you ok?" Asked Jonas Deep roaring voice. 

"I'm fine Jonas it's only that Cable was about to sit on me when I was invisible, why are you in Dragon form by the way?" 

"Eh, ok, I changed in my sleep, I guess I have to work on that don't you think." Jonas laughed. 

"Is that another one of you New people?" Cable asked interested in how this *Dragon* looked like. 

"Yep, that is Jonas. Apparently he has some problems keeping form." Cara said and grinned. 

"Har, har, very funny." Jonas said and walked away in to the Forest. 

Cable looked puzzled. "Why did it... *he* have a hockey stick attached to it's... *his* back?" 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda was trying to sort out all that had happen. Her conversations with Sammi and Jonas had gotten to her. They seemed to care for her. It was an unique experience. She was also jealous about their relationship. The way Sammi teased Jonas, but still had a sparkle in her eye. She would kill for a relationship like that. She was so tired of being alone, being a telepath that could feel everyone else's happiness, and not have an offensive power. 

"Well, it is kinda fun knowing who at this house has crush on who." she laughed out loud as she remembered some stray dreams she had picked up from some of the X-men. 

"I wouldn't go around saying that out loud, there are some people in this house who hate telepathic intrusion." replied Xavier as his hoverchair glided towards her. 

"What if it wasn't intentional?" asked Amanda smiling. 

"I doubt Wolverine would let you talk." he replied. 

"YOU KNOW!" Amanda shouted as she remembered his particular dream. 

"Well, some project more than others." Charles replied amusingly. 

"Like you do?" Amanda replied sweetly. 

Charles looked into her deep blue eyes, "You've known?" 

"Wolverine isn't the only one who needs to learn not to project." Amanda answered teasingly. 

Charles brought his chair into a position where they were nearly faced to each other. He regarded her very seriously. 

Amanda held her breath. 

"How do you feel about it?" he questioned. 

"Charles I......" 

"Am I interrupting anything?" asked the now dragonized Jonas. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria smiled as Nathan sat down (making sure no one is on the chair this time). For a long time, she had been one of Cable's fans. 

"So, you will try to be tactful at Father's Day." 

"Yes." Nathan said almost amused. The way Maria was talking to him, it was like that she was a, what they called, groupie. 

"Wow, what will you get him?" Cara asked. 

"How should I know?" 

Maria rolled her eyes under her glasses and she said, "Look, you're a telepath and you knew Scott for twelve years. Just get him something special. Like a tacky tie or something." 

"A... tie?" 

Maria giggled as she pictured Cyclops wearing his uniform wearing a tacky tie. "Okay. Maybe not a tie. Or you can just tell him you love him." 

"I can't tell him that I love him." Nathan said. "And why am I telling you all this. I don't even know you." 

"Sorry." Maria apologized, "But, maybe because, we know you very well. I do." 

"You may know about my relationship with Scott but you don't know about me that well." 

Maria smirked and said, "Okay, does Scott know about you and Lee? And I'm not talking about Jubilee either. Lee Forester right? Oh, and you do have a law degree in Harvard right? And the fact that you had a son named Tyler. So, that would make Scott a grandpa, right?" 

**Maria Cline**

Sammi was walking through the hall towards the living room when she heard Maria talking to someone. She didn't reconize the voice, so she thought she would have a peek. She walked into the room and said, "Hi, Maria. Who's your friend?" Then she saw him. "Cable. What are you doing here?" 

Cable looked at Maria and said, "Another one. How many are there?" He turned and looked at Sammi sizing her up. 

"Oh, just about seven. This is Sammi. Oh, Sammi, your boyfriend is a dragon, again." She said matter of factly. 

Sammi turned her attention to Maria when she heard the word 'boyfriend' and said,"Again? Oh man, don't get me wrong I like him in dragon form it's cool. It makes two X-people who have dragons, but mine's better than Kitty's. But I love him in human form, it has attributes, ya know?" 

Maria started laughing and Cable just looked confused. "You mean to tell me," He said watching Sammi,"That Dragon is your boyfriend?" 

"Yah, you want to make something of it, bub?" She said getting angry. 

Just as she was about to pummel Cable, Wolverine came in. 

"Calm down, darlin'. He didn't mean anything by it, did ya, Cable?" 

"No, I didn't." Cable said surprised to heard Wolverine stand up for him. 

"Better not have." Sammi said still eyeing Cable. " I'm going for a walk by the lake." 

"I'll call ya when Jamar wakes up." Logan said as she headed out the door. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"JONAS... I... it's only." Amanda turned Red, Xavier on the other hand manage to keep a straight face, or was that a telepathic illusion. 

"I see... it's nothing." Jonas teased and lay down on his stomach crossing his front legs/arms on the ground in front of him. 

"It never is, is it." he smiled big and Amanda and Xavier could see the sharp teeth on a seriously sarcastically grinning Dragon. 

"I fear you have mistaken the situation... Jonas, I am helping Amanda to come to terms with the role as a leader." 

"Xavier, you are a good liar... but you see in this form I hear any thing on the mansion grounds, and I was only 100 meters away when you two had your little talk." 

Jonas raised his head and placed it so one eye looked at Xavier and one at Amanda. "Now, tell the Dragon what this is all about, you don't want me to start to spread *unfounded* rumors... now would we?" 

Amanda widened her eyes. "You would not dare to." Amanda said shocked. 

"A Dragon... Never... lie!" he said and rested on his side. 

"Well now I'm not surprised that you two have not been around with the rest of us." Jonas said whit a wicked smile. 

Amanda eyes grew wide... "Say that again... DRAGON!" 

Jonas grinned and his eyes narrowed and did just that. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi turned around... /What kind of weird sound is that./ she thought and started to run in to the Forest. 

The scene that played out in front of her would have made her laugh, if not for the fact that she wold have been laughing at the person she loved. 

Jonas in Dragon form was jumping around flapping his wing's making strange sounds and looking rather confused, she saw that it was Amanda and Xavier that was responsible for it. 

"Stop it, what the hell are you doing." she yelled out and Amanda and Xavier turned to face her and losing concentration, Jonas fell over with a hard ~thud~ and an ~ompf~. 

Amanda smiled and said. "We were just showing Jonas the point of... keeping a secret." 

Jonas mumbled something in Swedish and turned over on his feet smiling. "Yeah right, and if you think you can get me to be quiet, you sure tried the wrong way." 

He made a flapping motion whit his big wings and took to the air. "Well I guess we will talk again real soon don't you think Amanda?" 

Sammi looked at Amanda puzzled. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas smiled to himself, he had found a major button to push on Amanda, but he didn't want to push it right now. 

Here far up in the sky, he was alone... he thought. 

He barely saw it coming, something grabbed on to his back and threw him to the side hitting him over the head and pushing him down, he was unprepared for this. 

He opened his eyes and saw the ground coming at him at an alarming rate, all he could do as he heard Sammi yell out something far away was extend his wings and hope that his Dragon body was stronger then he thought. 

**Admiral**

**_~Out by the Edge of the Property~_**

"Oop's I did it again, I played with your heart! Got lost in the game..." Ryan had been training for days and now was the time for battle. To say that she was giddy would be an understatement. 

First she had to slip on the grounds with out being seen.... or maybe go not. Ryan had an idea and it was brilliant. She quickly morphed herself into an exact Britney Spears duplicate, complete in red suit. "Catch them off guard and use their own shock against them." 

Sabertooth was going along with her just in case she needed help getting out. Personally, she didn't think she would need any help, but it was an order from big and ugly. 

"Ready Scooby!" Ryan said with a huge grin. 

"Ready Frail!" 

Ryan quickly ripped some of her clothes and Sabertooth picked her up to make like he had attacked her. He stepped onto the grounds of the mansion positive that the alarms would go off and the runt would catch his scent. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas flew up and down as he tried to see who or what was on his back. "Hey!" He yelled out as he mentally projected, **HELP!!!** 

**Maria Cline**

"ohhh." Jonas rolled over on his side, he never hurt this much in along time, the good thing is that his Dragon body is way stronger then he ever imagined. 

He pushed himself up on his legs as his wings automatically folding back, he had smacked right in to the Forest, trees are everywhere. 

Someone is screaming... he turns around. 

Several hundred meters away there is another Dragon. 

He tried to walk but staggers, what the hell happened. 

"ANOTHER DRAGON./ he is wide awake as he can clearly see the big Red Dragon, but it's not the dragon that is concerning him... it's who it's fighting with. 

"SAMMI!!!!!" Jonas roared out. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi jumped to the side. "If you have hurt him, you are dead, I'm going to rip out your heart." 

"Is that so." The new dragon said as its big clawed hand comes down to strike the annoying young woman jumping around. 

Sammi drive her Claws all the way in to the dragons hand. "LIKE THAT?" she screamed out. 

But as she draw first blood she misses the other hand that comes down and hits her hard, sending her flying away. 

Sammi is quick to stand but she now sees the Red Dragon coming charging down at her... 

Suddenly another Roar sounded and something came flying above her, hitting the new dragon mid air. 

Jonas tried to drive his claws in to the dragon's chest but the armored hide on it is to strong to make a serious wound. 

The red Dragon now on its back roared back, kicked Jonas away with its rear legs. 

Jonas is lost in rage, no human expression can be seen on his Dragon face. 

He is quick to flip back on to his feet and place himself so that the red dragon will have no clear path to Sammi. 

"A dragon protecting it's mate... how cute." the red dragon hissed out and slash Jonas across his face drawing blood. 

He roar out in pain and with a flap of his big wings he is all over the red Dragon, this time he gives in to the dragon nature and bites it over the shoulder, a ripping sound comes as it roars and strikes Jonas so hard that he is thrown away. 

"AHHHHH!!" the red dragon screams as blood trail down the front leg. 

Jonas out of instinct fill his big lungs with air and before he knows it, a stream of fire flies from his nostrils, causing the new dragon to stumble back more in fear than pain. 

He roars out again and jumps the dragon, but this time it kicks him with it's powerful back legs tearing a large wound across his chest. 

Jonas stumbled to the side screaming, falling over, the new dragon can see that more people are coming and took to the air, but Jonas grabbed it by the tail sending it hurling down in the Forest. 

He is breathing heavy, as the two dragons are circling each other, he tries to jump it but at the last second it flies up in the air, Jonas tries to follow but his chest wound tears too hard. 

The dragon makes a dive for Sammi but Jonas in a lighting fast movement moves as a shield over her, feeling the dragon's rear claws dig deep into his back; he screams one last time before he snarling falls to his side. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The dragon flies away, and after a moment it vanishes from sight, Jonas staggers to his feet... growling, something deep inside his head is telling him that this is far from over. 

Breathing heavy he looked down concerned at Sammi. 

He is starting to feel dizzy, he staggers to the side and sits down. 

His chest hurt badly, he tries to stand but falls to his side with a deep roar. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Nathan stared out as he mentally sort out a situation. A girl who seems to know many of his secrets. Another who's boyfriend is a _dragon_. A group of kids who popped out of nowhere. Suddenly, there was a mental cry, 

**HELP!!!** 

Nathan stood up and told Logan, "I just got some psychic distress call." 

Just after that, alarms rang out in the air. "Awww... man." Maria muttered as she looked around nervously. 

"Let's go." Logan said as he and Nathan ran out of the lawn. As he came out, Logan could smell the faint odors of his arch-foe. Maria turned invisible as she ran to her room to change into her uniform. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Mystique got out of dragon form as she watched her teammates do their plan. "Soon, it will be ready." she said to herself as she smiled. 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee was still huddled in the closet while all of this was happening... as the alarms rang through the air, Leilee groaned and pulled her knees tighter into her chest... 

"Not now," she groaned, "I just can't deal with this right now!!!" 

She wrapped her arms tightly around her head, desperately trying to block out the sound... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara was running for the door...she knew there was something very wrong happening outside, and she wanted to try to help. 

She stopped dead in her tracks when she heard a voice coming from the hall closet... 

"Not now!" she heard; the rest of what was said was too muffled for Cara to understand... 

/That voice sounds familiar,/ thought Cara, /But I'm not sure who it is...I guess there is only one way to find out!/ 

She walked over to the door of the closet, and opened it... 

"Leilee!!!" the shocked and worried voice of Cara rang out, as she took in the scene before her... 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Jonas, NNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Sammi yelled as fell to he knees next to him. 

She started hugging his neck and cried. "Jonas, please be Ok. I need you. I need you. Please. I love you." She said as she laid her head on his,"I love you." And with that she kissed his neck, and continued to cry. 

**Jubilee_79**

Xavier and Amanda raced towards their injured comrade. They had both picked up on the fight, but were unable to get there in time. Xavier headed towards Jonas as Amanda went to comfort Sammi. 

Amanda did a quicky scan of the area and picked up the presence of the one in the mall and of who she believed was Sabertooth. His presence was more wild and dark than Wolverine. The girl's seemed slightly carefree and very bitter. 

There were others but she couldn't detect just who but she had the feeling that they were " old friends " of the X-men. Amanda main concern were her teammates. She sent a message to Hank to come as quickly as possible. She wasn't prepared to lose anyone yet. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Someone was crying, it felt like he had busted a million ribs, if he still had them as a dragon, there was something incredibly painful in his back. 

It was Sammi who was crying, she was grabbing his neck, every breath hurt like fire, but he had to tell her he was ok. 

Jonas again tried to stand up but he had no strength left, he eased back down frowning. 

"Sammi." his voice was weak, but steady. 

She eased up her crying as she heard his voice. "Yes?" she said holding her tears back. 

"I'm ok... only need to rest, ok, don't cry i'm ok." He said opening his eyes carefully. 

Suddenly something in his back made it's presence painfully known, he roared in pain, his hand digging into the ground. 

"There is something in his back, a bit of a claw, I think it's locked into his ribs, I can't pull it out..." Hank yelled out. 

"We need to cut it out." Jonas saw Hank come in to view in front of him. 

"Jonas, your opponent left a rather large calling card behind, we have to get it out before it digs in to your lung." 

Jonas clenched his teeth, growling. "then get it out." 

"Rogue, Logan, get up here." Hank looked sad at Jonas. "I'm afraid that I can't give you any sedative." 

"Get on with it Hank, get that damn thing out." Jonas grimaced in pain and roared. "NOW!!!" 

"Sammi, you have to back away from me, I have to have room to give in to the pain... and I don't want to hurt you." Jonas said and Maria held Sammi and pulled her away from Jonas. 

"I'm ready, Hank, make it Quick." He said looking over at Sammi. 

His eyes went wild as Logan cut in to him and he could feel Rogue grab the claw. 

She pulled it out it slowly, so Hank could monitor so that nothing went wrong, Jonas roared at his maximum, and began to drag himself forward... throwing his head from side to side. 

Finally the intense pain stopped, it was out... it was strange, he could suddenly feel his body heal. 

He let his breathing slowing down, easing back on to his stomach and passed out, giving in to the remaining pain now that he would be ok. 

They all listened to the soft and deep peace full breathing of a 40 foot sleeping Dragon, stretched out in front of the mansion. 

**Admiral**

"I want to know WHO did this, NNNOOOOOOWWWW!!!!" Sammi yelled. 

Maria was still holding her as she scanned the grounds with her eyes and ears, that's when she heard it, laughing. She looked at Maria and said, "I'm Ok, now. Thank you." 

She moved out of the embrace, walked over to Jonas and said in his ear, "I'm going to get the Bastard that did this to you. I love you." She whispered so no one heard her except Logan who was watching her closely. He knew what it felt like to watch someone you care for get hurt and be powerless to stop it. As Sammi started walking towards the woods, He heard it too; the laughing. 

"Everyone, stay here and guard him. Who ever did this might be back. I'm going after her." Logan said and he started walking towards the woods. 

As he walked he heard laughing get louder and that Creed's smell was getting stronger. 

/Glad I decided to follow her. She'll have a problem with Creed. Come on, girl remember what I told ya about stalking./ He thought as he came up to where he smelt her. 

He looked around but didn't see her, suddenly in one quick movement two hands picked him up from behind. 

/What the..?/ He thought, then he turned sightly to see Sammi had been the one to pick him up and set him on a branch of the tree. 

She placed her finger to her lips in the sssssshhhhh gesture. He nodded. She pointed towards the end of the property. He looked and he saw Creed and a girl in a red body suit. They were laughing as she ripped her clothes. 

Sammi and Logan looked at each other and she mouthed, "We have to warn the others. I have an idea. Watch me." 

She slowly climbed down from the tree and walked a little ways forward and started making herself cry. Logan watched and he knew exactly what her plan was. She was setting a trap and she was the bait. She went to a tree and slumped down against it. Logan looked to where Creed and the girl were and Creed was taking the bait. 

/I have to move or Creed is going to catch my scent and then the trap will be sprung too soon./ Logan thought as he made his way through the trees without a sound. 

When He was a safe enough distance away, He went back to watching and waiting for Creed to try something stupid. He knew he would. 

**jubilee_79**


	7. Reality Bites-Part 7

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.

**Reality Bites--part 7**

Cara had heard the dragon's roar of pain coming from outside... then all was still. She was torn... One of her teamates was outside; possibly dead... another teamate was on the hall closet floor, curled up in a tight ball; and she looked like she had seen better days. 

Cara didn't know what to do...should she stay here and try to help Leilee, or go outside to check what was happening?!! She was frantically looking back and forth between the two doors, completely torn... 

/Oh, I wish I were two people!!!/ she thought desperately... she closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, and wished as hard as she could... 

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Cara screamed, as she doubled over and fell to the ground in intense physical pain...she felt like she was being ripped in two...then she passed out. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara came to a couple of minutes later, and found herself looking up at the shocked and worried face of Leilee...and Leilee was looking at her, and something directly behind Cara. 

Cara rolled over to see what was there, and found herself staring eye to eye with...HERSELF!!! Cara gasped; there were two of her!!! 

The two Caras' stared at each other; two pairs of red, glowing eyes opened as wide as they could go...both girls sat up slowly, still watching each other, and they got slowly up to their feet... 

Both of them looked at the door which led outside, then at Leilee who was standing there with her mouth open; then the two Caras looked once more at each other... 

"You stay here with Leilee," said one to the other, "I'll go outside to see what is going on!" and with that said, she ran for the door. 

The other Cara and Leilee looked at each other in shock... 

******Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Should we not try to cover the wounds up, or stop the bleeding?" Maria asked and looked at Jonas's large sleeping Dragon body. 

"The blood flow has already subsided, it would seem that his dragon physiology somehow caused the cell structure around the wound to burn itself, and thereby close the wound; and now that we have removed the offending claw from his back the more serious wounds can also heal themselves." 

Jonas groaned and turned on his side, resting on the chest wound, his eyes open as he again felt the pain and roared out low. "This is getting old quick." he said and carefully stood up on unsteady legs. 

"Take it easy big guy, you're not ready to dance right now." Rogue said and helped him stand. 

"Where is Sammi." Jonas sniffed in the air, there was several more people around that he hadn't smelled before. 

"I must help her." he extend his big wings, but when the blood rushed out into the wings, he almost blacked out. 

Rogue stopped him from falling over. "You can help her by resting." 

Jonas was about to argue, but the strain was too much and he collapsed on his side. 

******Admiral**

Cara was running as fast as she could; she reached the others just in time to see Jonas the dragon collapse back on the ground. 

She felt queasy... and her queasiness wasn't just from seeing the condition her teammate/friend was in either... 

/I guess there is a limit to this new ability,/ she thought weakly, as she fell to her knees and wrapped her arms tightly around her waist, doubling over in pain... 

/I can't seem to go very far from the other Cara, without being in extreme physical pain.../ was Cara's last thought, as she passed out again... 

"Cara!" shrieked Maria, as she watched the girl fall... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Back in the hallway, the other Cara suddenly doubled over in pain... 

"Cara, What's wrong?!" a shocked and confused Leilee asked the shaking girl. 

"Leilee...please help me...it hurts so bad," moaned Cara. 

She looked up at Leilee, her eyes filled with pain..."Please get me outside with the other Cara...I can't move..." she said weakly, and passed out cold. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria ran to the young girl and turned visible. "Cara?" 

"Mansion." She moaned. 

"Of course. The mansion." Maria said as she helped her up. That feeling of danger still lingered like a bad stench, still she had to help her. 

Maria and Cara went to the mansion just as Leilee and another Cara came out. The two Caras smiled as they managed to stand on their own. 

"Thanks." They said in unison. "We just learned how to split and we didn't know that we needed to stick by each other." 

Maria sighed as she said, "Just pull yourselves together, okay? I have this strange feeling that something is still wrong." 

"Like the fact that we're in a comic book universe?" Leilee quipped, hiding the pain she was showing before. 

**Maria Cline**

The two Caras closed their eyes tightly, and gritted their teeth...they concentrated with all of their might trying to pull themselves back together into one person... But it was no use... The two Caras opened their eyes and stared at each other in dismay... 

"We can't pull ourselves together!" they cried out in one voice... 

**Rainfall**

"Hmmm... maybe we can get Xavier to send us Jamie Madrox. His powers are like yours." Maria reasoned. "In the meantime, you two just stick by each other. We better go and see what the problem is." 

**Maria Cline**

The two Caras looked at Maria... she seemed very worried... as though she could sense something that the others weren't aware of. 

Maria looked back in the direction they had come from... a shadow passed over her face. 

"We have to get back there, NOW!" she said urgently to the other three girls... then turned around and began running. 

Leilee and the two Caras looked at each other in shock, then began running after Maria... 

**Rainfall**

Leilee stopped short at the sight. It was Sabretooth and Britney Spears. Only, it wasn't. There was no way in H*** that was Britney Spears. The thought pattern was different. And there was something there....Something different from everyone else's pattern. It was subtle, but there, none the less. She motioned to the others the be quiet and stay put. 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

While the others were dealing with Jonas and the two uninvited guests, Xavier was leading Amanda to Cerebro. He figured that the added boost would allow her to get the Beta scan of their opponents. Amanda was too worried about her teammates to argue. 

"Sit down while I tune the machine to your brain frequency." Charles ordered. 

"Wouldn't be better if you did it? I mean, you know what you're doing." stated Amanda nervously. 

"Do not worry. Just focus your thoughts on Sabertooth and the other presence. Once you have located them, see if you detect anyone else." 

"Do you think someone else was behind the attack?" Amanda asked as she let her mind go. 

"I know there is." Amanda heard Charles reply as she began to drift off onto the psychic plane. 

Soon she felt Sabertooth and Ryan's presence and also Logan's and Sammi's. She could also detect another's hiding behind a strong psychic shield. As she tried to penetrate it, Amanda could feel the darkness radiating from it. It seemed familiar. As she pushed past the psychic haze, she picked up on the person's plans for the X-men, and they weren't good. 

Just as she identified who their opponent was, Amanda felt herself being slammed off the plane by an intense psychic wave. As Xavier came to help her, Amanda's last thought was that they were in for more trouble then she could possibly handle. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas once again got to his feet, this time more secure in his movement. 

"Jonas it would be in your best interest to lie still and rest." Hank said, backing away from him slowly. 

"I never been much for... My best interest." he said feeling his chest, it was a little sore, but, it didn't hurt that badly anymore, but now he was thirsty and hungry. 

"Jonas why don't we wait right here... Sammi will be back any minute." Rogue tried and held on to his leg, he tried to shake her off but damn was she strong. 

"Haaaannnnkkkkk." Rogue yelled out as Jonas started to shake more violently, and Rogue was sent hurling away up in the air. 

"Stop it Dragon..." Cable yelled out, but before he knew it Jonas was an inch from his face, his big blue cat like eyes staring down at him. 

"...Or I will..." was all Cable managed to say before Jonas roared. "MY NAME IS NOT DRAGON!!!" 

~SMACK~ Cable was sent flying from a straight slap by Jonas tail, Hank didn't wait for an invitation, but backed away. 

Jonas again extended his wings, it hurt but not like before, and it hurt even more when he set to the air and started to fly... 

/water, I'm so damn thirsty./ he thought and took off in the direction of the lake he knew was out there. 

/Water first, then I find something to eat.../ he thought, but what was he going to eat? For a second that dragon that attacked before didn't seem all that bad, but he was quick to set aside that idea as he sat down beside the lake. 

First he tried to scoop up some with his hands, but that didn't work. 

"Well I guess I have to go animal on this." he said and stuck his tongue into the water. 

/Nice./ he thought and started drinking, slowly something inside him started to cool off. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cable stood up, shaking his head furiously. "When I get my hands on him, I will... Oh yes I will." he told himself and started to walk towards Rogue and Hank. 

He suddenly noticed Maria, Cara and Cara... two Cara's? And a new kid he didn't recognize run towards the Forest. Ok, he was going to get something straightened out right now. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas cleared his thoughts. "Sammi! She's in trouble." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan and Sammi were leading Sabretooth into a trap, Maria and the two Caras were on their way to help, but they didn't know about any trap. 

Leilee was looking at the *Britney Spears* wanna be, Cable was on his way to get this straightened out, without a leader the situation could turn bad, by the drop of a pin... not to mention a 40 foot Dragon Landing with a bang behind Sabretooth, Roaring. 

"Hi, Tooth!... you in the wrong dog yard, and I'm the guard dog!!!" 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The plan was working out fine, til she started to smell Cara, Maria, Leilee, and Cable? She had to think fast. Then she felt Jonas's presence even before she saw him land. That's when it came to her," NOW!!!" She yelled and sent a very strong thought to the girls and Cable. 

Sammi jumped up as Jonas had Sabertooh distracted, "That would be my guard dog, bub. So why don't you mess with me." She popped her claws and slashed him across the back. 

He howled a bit and turned, and said, "You messed with the wrong guy, frail." He started to advance but didn't get too much of a chance as she sent a range of HIGH grade explosives at his face. 

"You got that wrong. You, bub, messed with the wrong TEAM." She said as Logan stood behind her, ready for a fight. 

"That's right, darlin'." 

Sammi thought very hard sending it to Jonas, /Clobber him on the back of the head, Very Hard./ 

Jonas did and he was out cold. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria, the two Caras and Leilee were surprised when they heard Sammi's thought, /When I say, ambush Bimbo Spears./ 

As Cable got the thought, he smiled and said, "No wonder Wolverine is so protective of her." 

They were in attack positions when they heard, "NOW!!!!" 

The Four girls jumped and tackled the blond and Maria punched her in the face so hard that she was knocked out, cold. "That was for hurting my friends!" She said surprised that she actually did that. 

Cable was surprised too, because of Maria and the fact that neither him nor Wolverine had to lift a finger to help the new team. 

**jubilee_79**

Jonas grabbed Creed quick in his big hands when he saw that he was starting to come around. He looked at him with a strange grin on his face. Creed looked back eyeing him evil. 

"What are ya looking at." Creed growled. 

Jonas eye's narrowed, lifted Creed close to his head, smacking his lips... 

"Lunch..?" Jonas, said matter of fact smiling like crazy as he heard Logan laugh. 

**Admiral**

"No, Jonas, Don't eat HIM. You may get fleas." Sammi said laughing along with Logan. 

**jubilee_79**

Mystique watched from the shadows; she saw her crew about to be taken out by the X-Men, and a group which she had never seen before... She quickly opened up the com-link... 

"Boss! I think we should go to plan B...NOW!!!" she spoke urgently into the com-link. 

Just as she finished speaking the last word, a portal suddenly opened up directly behind her... She made a run for it... 

Sabertooth saw the portal open...he sank all of his claws and fangs into Jonas the dragon's hand. Jonas dropped him with a ferocious howl of pain... Sabertooth ran for the portal... 

Ryan (who still looked like Britney Spears) woke up and saw the other two make a run for it... 

/Oh, no... you are not leaving without me!!!/ she thought to herself. 

She grabbed Maria and threw her into the other girls... got up and began running for the portal... 

One of the Caras grabbed a small stone, energized it, and threw it in front of Ryan... it exploded on the ground, and threw Ryan several feet through the air. 

She got up quickly, looked back at Cara, then at the portal which was beginning to close. 

"Well, there's no time to kill you now," she said to the annoying girl, an evil smile pasted on her face, "so I'll have to take a rain check... but you can have THIS as a parting gift!!!" 

She focused her powers on the Cara that threw the stone... both Caras collapsed to the ground in pain... 

Ryan's evil laugh could be heard as she disappeared through the portal...and it closed behind her... 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The Caras groaned in the med lab as everyone recovered from their first battle. 

Maria was sitting in the corner as she rubbed her fist. "You okay?" Nathan asked as he offered a cup of coffee. 

"Yeah." Maria said as she waved her hand. "I don't like coffee." 

"You seem uneasy." 

"I've just been through my first battle." Maria said as she struggled to keep her voice as low as possible. "I know that you've fought all your life, but this battle thing is new to me. I haven't even fought before." 

"You did manage yourself well for a first timer." 

"Thanks." 

The two paused as Scott walked across the room to one of the Caras and talked to Hank. Nathan glanced at Maria's face and surface feelings to notice a startleness and a degree of shock. It was strong and there was a sense of fear of losing. 

"You can sense what I was thinking." Maria said in a matter of fact way. 

"Yes." 

"Can I talk to you in private?" Maria asked as she touched Nathan's metallic arm. 

"Okay." Nathan said as Maria took his arm and led him out. 

"Alone." 

**We can talk like this.** Nathan said as Maria's eyes widen. 

**Okay.** 

**Maria Cline**

Leilee stepped between Maria and Cable. "Before you two get all telepathic and stuff on us, I want you to know the baddies didn't get away scott free. No offense, Cyke." 

"None taken." 

Maria stared at her. "What do you mean...?" 

Leilee grinned. "Well....I left her a little parting gift..." 

**_Baddies Lair_**

"I CAN'T CHANGE BACK!!!!!!" screamed Ryan. 

Mystique stared at her. "What do you mean you can't change back?" 

"I can't focus. No matter what I do. It's like my ADD's on Hyperdrive! I'm stuck as BRITNEY SPEARS!!!!!" 

"It's an improvement, Frail." 

"WHAT'S THAT, CREED?" 

"Nothing...." 

**_~X-Mansion~_**

"How could you tell she had ADD?" asked Cyclops. 

"The thought pattern. It was a little more....hyper. Not as organized as a normal thought pattern. And I could sense a slight chemical difference. She also acted similar to this boy I tutor who has it too. When he's excited, he acts just like she did. So I made her ADD.... go into lightspeed." 

Cara grinned. "You are bad." 

Leilee grinned back. "I know." 

**Leilee**

Cyclops looked sharply at the two Caras; only one had smiled at Leilee... the other one only stared off into the distance, looking confused... 

/That wasn't supposed to happen,/ he thought, /they should BOTH have smiled...I better have a talk with Jean...I think something is wrong with Cara./ 

**Rainfall**

**_Baddies Lair_**

Outside, children played oblivious to the danger in the building beside them. Ryan sat at the window and watched them with some fascination. She was finally starting to calm down a little but was still unable to change back to her regular form. Her thoughts drifted to the children outside. So innocent, so young… the world has such promise at that age. 

"When did I lose that outlook on life? When did I become so bitter? Probably when that jerk I gave my virginity to cheated on me and dumped me a week later. Not to mention all the jerks since then that got me drunk just to get in my pants and all the boyfriends that beat up on me. Just when I thought I had finally found a nice guy he ends up cheating on me. He seemed so nice I can't believe he did that with my best friend." 

Ryan had dated some jerks in her life but the last one took the cake. At least with the others it was obvious… they treated her like s--- so she never really got attached to them. Sam was different though, he seemed nicer. He seemed honest and caring. She really thought she was in love. Then she came home early from work one day to catch him and her best friend in bed. That is when she lost it and burnt the house down. 

"No such thing as a nice guy, Ryan. Some are just better at faking it then other ones" Ryan said remembering the advice her brother had given her when she was little. 

"Do you always talk to yourself, frail? " 

"Shut up Scooby before I turn you into a bug and squash you!" 

She had heard him come in when she first began talking to herself but she hoped he would just go away. The sad thing is that Victor had been the only guy to treat her well. He never tried to get in her pants and treated her like a real person. Sure he tried to kill her but that is much better then being used… or being lied to. 

"Maybe we could go outside and scare some kids. Ruin the teen queens rep a little. Have a little fun with your temporary face! What would you say to that frail?" 

He was trying to cheer her up. Ryan smiled and said "You're on!" 

She made a mental note to stay away from him. She was getting to close and he was getting to nice. That always led to trouble, just like with Sam, but for now she needed some fun. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Sammi and Jonas were sitting by the lake. He was still in dragon form because he was not fully healed yet. Sammi was sitting on one of his large legs. 

She looked out to the lake and asked," I was afraid that I lost you. I don't know what I would do if that happened." She was trying not to cry again but it wasn't working. 

Jonas looked at her. "I wouldn't be able to stand it if I lost you either. Have you heard anything about Jamar?" 

"No. Logan said that he would come and get me when he woke up." She said turning to him, looking him in his eye and said, "I'm gonna go check on him. Will you be alright?" 

"I'll be fine. You go. When he wakes up, you need to be there or the X-Men are going to lose another room." Jonas said with a big dragon smile. 

Sammi got up, hugged him and said, "By the way, Thanks for protecting me, again." She kissed him on the side of his dragon nose and started into the house. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~In a Park Somewhere~_**

"Mommy, Brittany Spears took my ice-cream!!" A small child wailed at his mother. 

Ryan and Victor had been walking through the park generally tormenting anyone who came into sight. Taking candy and bikes from children. When the kids recognized Brittany they would run up to her and try to get her autograph… she would ignore them and Victor would try to pimp her out to the kids parents. Just as a joke of course to see what reaction they would get. 

"For extra the kids can watch or you can make them a video." The sad part was that a couple of the fathers seemed interested in the idea. The majority of them would just look in shock and take their kids far away as fast as they could. When they got bored of that they started beating up on clowns making balloons for they kids in the park. 

"Hey watch this!" Ryan said as she turned a clown into a giant ant. The kids ran away screaming. 

"You seem in a better mood now, Frail." Sabertooth said as he tripped a couple of crying children. 

"Don't call me frail." 

He stopped her and looked in her eyes. "What's the matter with you girl? Why do you hate everyone so much? I got a reason to hate, I got an animal in me, you don't so what's wrong?" 

She looked in his eyes and then she saw it. He was going to try to kiss her and she was not about to let that happen. So she screamed and punched him in the face. 

"What the??" Sabertooth said as he saw her run out of the park. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Sammi slowly walked into Jamar's room. She grabbed the chair and brought it to the bed and sat down. She looked at the IV that Hank had put up, and followed it down to his hand. 

She placed her hand on his and said," You're going to be OK. Everyone here is going to help you. I'm not going to let you, be taken away from me again. I promise." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

~Outside the door~ 

Logan stood listening. As he heard her promise, he knew why he was becoming more and more protective of her, she was like him. She acted like Jubilee at times but the more he knew her she reminded him of himself. 

/I won't let anything happen to you, either, darlin'./ He promised to himself. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Change room mates, why?" Jonas growled and looked at Xavier through the window of his office, still in Dragon form. 

"I'm concerned about you and Sammi sharing rooms, you have become rather close, it would be... wrong of me to ignore that." 

"Did I fall asleep and wake up in the dark ages?" Jonas said matter of fact, this was silly. 

"I think that it would be in every one's best interest, Sammi could stay with Jamar." Xavier looked serious. 

"Are you afraid that we will... Like please." Jonas lowered his head down to rest on the window frame, rolling his eyes. 

"I was about to ask Sammi if she would like to stay in Jamar's room, but I don't think she should be forced in there." Jonas said stomping his tail into the ground. 

Jonas suddenly smelled someone coming. 

"Xavier, I think we can talk about this later, your... favorite student is coming." Jonas said angrily and left the window as Amanda opened the door. 

He walked over to the window where Jamar was resting, lifting himself up on his back legs and looking into the window, Sammi was resting in a chair. Jonas carefully tapped one claw on the window, Sammi smiled and walked over to open it. 

"Hey Sammi, I just had an interesting conversation with Xavier." 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria and Nathan watched the young girl walk away with a grin on her face. Maria just had to smile. Then she glanced at Cable again. **Okay, so... I need some advice.** 

**Go ahead.** Nathan said. 

Maria looked down and said softly in her mind, **I know things about this world that not even you know about. Did Cyclops tell you about where we came from? Other than the alternate dimension thing?** 

**Not really.** 

**Well... This will sound off...I guess we come from the future and in an alternate universe.** 

**Doesn't sound so odd to me.** 

Maria smirked and said, **Yeah, you would. But, you see... we know things. But not everything we know is absolute truth. There's some things that are a little wonky. Did the psi wars happen in this world?** 

**Yes.** 

**Then, how did you regain your telepathy?** 

**It just came back. I'd say...a couple of days ago.** 

**That's when we started popping up.** 

**Let me guess, you want to know if we should know what you know.** 

**Yeah, I mean, it's very important but if I tell you another alternate world might suffer because of me. But, I don't want your dad or anyone else here to be ignorant of the truth about something.** 

Nathan sighed. This girl and the others obviously did know things but for some odd reason, why do they know about some of the petty things about this life? **If it's been bothering you so much, I suggest that you do tell Scott. It might accidentally slip out of your mind. May I ask you something?** 

**Shoot.** Maria said as she snickered to herself at the bad pun. 

**Did the battle of Apocalypse occur yet in your world? Did the Gathering of the Twelve happen?** 

Maria blinked as she fought the tears from her eyes. "No comment." she said verbally as she stared at Scott who was on the phone. "No comment at all. Excuse me. Thanks for the help." Maria said as she vanished. 

Nathan watched the chair move slightly and the faint sounds of pittering pattering feet and even fainter sounds of sobs. 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"What did you and Xavier talk about?" Sammi asked. She was curious about this. First, she finds Xavier and Amanda making Jonas the Dragon do the chicken dance and now Jonas is having an interesting conversation with Xavier. 

/What gives?/ she thought. "Did he make you do the Macarana or something?" She asked looking at her dragon. 

**jubilee_79**

"No, and thank G*d. He wants us in different rooms." Jonas said sadly. 

"What? Why?" She said and then she thought,"Oh. He thinks WE can't handle our hormones. At least we can admit our feelings. If him and Amanda don't do something soon, one of them is going to burst." 

Jonas looked shocked. "You know?" He asked when he could speak again. 

"Yeah. Last night, While we were talking I heard them in the garden. This super hearing is cool. I can hear everything. And the sense of smell is even better." She said as she turned towards the door, "You don't have to stay out there all night, Logan. If you come in I promise I won't bite." 

Logan came in the door looking embarrassed, "Sorry, darlin'. I was worried about you." 

"Thanx." She said turning back to Jonas," What are we going to do?" 

**jubilee_79**

"If you would like to share room with me, I think I can push some button's on Xavier... and Amanda." Jonas said with a big... BIG grin. 

"But I don't wanna push them if I don't have to, but I'm not about to give in to him thinking that it would be immoral that we sleep in the same room." 

Sammi leaned close and looked him in the eyes... "What button's are we talking about here... Dragon?" she said, smiling like Crazy. 

Logan looked puzzled. 

**Admiral**

Logan heard a low moan coming from Jamar. He looked to Sammi to see that she heard it too. She walked back to the bed and sat down. 

"Jamar? Can you hear me?" She asked. 

"Sammi? Is that really you?" He asked slowly opening his eyes. "Man, Its good to see you. I thought I was dreaming before." 

"This is not a dream, kid." Logan said. 

"Don't call me kid, OK? And I won't trash anymore rooms. Deal?" He said looking at Logan. Jamar still didn't know where he was but as long as Sammi was there he knew everything was going to be fine. 

"Deal." Logan said looking at the two. He noticed that Jamar was a lot calmer with Sammi there and he stopped saying 'us'. "I'm gonna leave you two alone." He said looking at Sammi and Jamar. Then he turned looking at Sammi and Jonas. "Whatever you two are planning, I want in. Maybe it will get the old Chuck off my back." He smiled and left. 

As he was walking down the hall he realized that he was still smiling. 

/Now that's a change./He thought, /I've been doing this alot since these kids showed up. I'm sure gonna miss them when they go./ 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

When Logan was talking to Sammi and Jonas, Jamar looked over to see a dragon looking in his window. He sat up and said," A DDDDragon?" 

"Oh, sorry. I didn't get the chance to introduce you." Sammi said as she went over to the window. 

"Jamar, This is Jonas, my boyfriend." Sammi pointed to Jamar and said, "Jonas. This is Jamar, my brother." She turned back to Jonas and said," Maybe you should change back and come in the door." She said with a smile and kissed him on the nose. 

"I'll be right, back and meet you proper, Jamar." Jonas said as he left. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Scott got off the phone with Jamie Madrox. He told the multiple mutant about his situation with the two Caras. He didn't tell him about the fact that they are from an alternate dimension, just the fact that they are hopelessly lost. 

"Cyclops." a meek voice whispered. 

Scott looked around and nodded. "Hello, Maria. Can you please show yourself?" 

Maria faded into view. "Sorry, it's just that when I get nervous, I tend to go invisible. I need to tell you something that's very important. But I might be wrong. I need to ask something. Did Alex die when a time machine exploded on an airplane?" 

Scott swallowed a little and nodded. "Yes." 

"And Polaris insisted that he's alive despite the fact that Alex's body is destroyed?" 

"Yes." 

Maria took a deep breath. She started to fade again as her hands shake. "Okay, now I know what's it's like to have a younger sibling. I know that you are probably in pain about Alex's 'death'. But, you should know." 

She leaned closer as Scott bent down to listen to her whisper, "He's alive. The time machine explosion combined with Fixx's probe shunted his soul to an alternate universe. He's in this weird universe where Storm's a vampire, Madelynn Pryor is his wife before she became the Goblin Queen, and he has a son named Scotty. The kid is some alternate version of Cable. I think. I know that sounds hard to swallow but with your history, this might sound very normal." 

**Maria Cline**


	8. Reality Bites-Part 8

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.  
Authors: A.C., Admiral, Jason_Barnett, Chaos, Dreamweaver, Maria_Cline, jubilee_79, Lady_Yann, Le Fae, Leilee, Rainfall, riverdreamer, snowbaby, and TEB. 

**

Reality Bites--part 8

**

Jonas sat down and started to concentrate, turning slowly back to human... 

/Damn, it this going to hurt like this every time./ he thought when the transformation was done, he felt a little dizzy like last time. 

Looking over his uniform he adjusted it on some places that didn't get right but all in all it had worked fine. 

Feeling the side of his face to see if there was any scars, but was glad to find none. 

Happy to be back in human form he sprung straight up in the air, at top speed and started to fly back to the mansion. 

This was life, the ability to fly, super strength... but most of all Sammi, Xavier was about o find out that two con play his game. 

**Admiral**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

Sabertooth entered the front door of the house. He had been walking for some time now trying to figure out what had happened in the park earlier. He saw Mystique approach him and quickly put on his hardest expression. 

"Where on Earth have you been? Sinister has been waiting to call a meeting to go over what went wrong and come up with a new plan." 

"I don't need to tell you everywhere I go. I come and go as I please frail. Have you seen Ryan? I need to talk to her" 

"I haven't seen her since she came back an hour ago. She seemed upset, did you two have another fight?" 

"None of your business" 

"Fine then I'll be in my room until the meeting starts" 

Sabertooth parted ways and began to sniff Ryan out. He opened to door to her room to see Ryan jumping on the bed singing to some oldie. 

"Well he walked up to me and he asked me if I wanted to dance… He looked kinda nice and so I said I might take a chance" 

"Ahem" 

"And when he danced he held me tight… and when he walked me home that night" 

"Hey frail!" 

"And then he kissed me!" 

"FRAIL!!!!" 

"Oh hey Scooby, what's up?" 

"I wanted to talk to you about today in the park" 

"What park?" That's it Ryan play dumb, she told herself mentally. Pretend like nothing happened and you will be fine. 

"Never mind" /If this is the way she wants to play it then that's fine with me./ 

"Okey dokey pokey!" 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

"So, you have a boyfriend now?" Jamar looked at Sammi after she sat back down. 

"Yeah. But he didn't come with me. I met him here." She said. 

"Where exactly is here?"Jamar asked. 

"Oh. I forgot you, don't know. We are in this alternate universe. Here the X-Men are real. Do you remember the X-Men?" Sammi asked. 

"That's that comic book that I got you addicted too, right?" 

"Yeah. I stopped reading it when you...um..were taken away." 

"What happened to you anyway?" Jamar asked her. 

"Well, after Michele and Ryan left with you, I ran away. I lived in a mall, til I was sixteen and I could get a job. Now, I live on my own. When I was in the mall, there was a really nice security guard and he had a daughter my age so he took care of me. He brought me food, and never told anyone about me living there. He brought me a X-men comic book, the one where Jubilee was introduced, he said when he read it, it reminded him of me so he gave me it, I read it and I was hooked again." 

"Wow. But how did you get here? How did I get here?" Jamar asked. 

"I don't know. I was just walking to my couch and starting to sit down, then I was falling and next thing I know I landed on Beast in the med lab." Sammi said starting to blush remembering all that happened in the med lab. 

"I know what you mean. One minute I'm being strapped down to the bed and then, poof, I'm in the med lab and the voices are yelling and I freak. Then I see you and this girl hugging me and I black out. Its weird, but I'm glad I not at that hospital anymore." Jamar said shaking his head, then he looked at Sammi and said, "So, Blue, huh?" 

Sammi laughed and touched her streak," Yeah, I've been changing it every once in a while. The black with a white streak was starting to get on my nerves." 

"You never told me how you got that, I remember you having it when you first came to the house, but you never told me how you got it." 

"It happened the night my parents died. I had pure black hair like my mom, but when I woke up in the hospital there was a pure white streak in it." She said remembering the night her parents died. Then suddenly she heard a voice in her head,"Sammi, could you please come to my office. I would like to talk to you." 

"Sammi. Are you ok?" Jamar asked, worried. 

Sammi snapped out of it. " Yeah, I'm fine the professor just wants to talk to me. Probably about me and Jonas sharing a room. I'm going to go, I'll be back, Ok?" 

"Yeah. I'm going to get a nice quiet sleep. For once in my life." Jamar said smiling. 

"OK. Good night." Sammi said as she walked out the room. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi knocked on the door. (Come In) the professor replied in her head. She opened the door to find him sitting behind his desk. 

"You wanted to see me." She said. 

"I was talking to Logan, Cara, Leilee, Maria and Cable about the fight today, and they said that they all heard you in their heads, giving them orders." He said out loud. 

"I don't know how that happened. I was just thinking what I wanted to say, really hard and tried to send it to them. I guess, I did." She said sitting down in the chair across from him. 

"Well, it seems that you are also a telepath. What are your powers again?" 

"Well, there's the heightened senses, the fireworks, these," She popped her claws, then sheathed them back, "the healing factor and now I guess telepathy." 

"You have a healing factor?" He asked. 

"Yeah, how else do you think I kept up enough with Logan yesterday. I got hurt and I healed." 

"I see." He said thinking things over, then he said,"It would seem that you have Logan and Jubilee's powers fully. That is definitely quite a combination." 

"Yeah, all that power in one package. Is there something else you wanted to talk to me about?" 

"Yes, I was wondering if you would want to share a room with Jamar?" 

"You mean move in there and leave Jonas?" 

"Well, yes. I think that is the best thing for everyone." 

"On what planet?" Sammi asked. She was starting to get mad no one was going to MAKE her leave Jonas. 

"I don't want to leave Jonas, and You are not going to make me!!!" She yelled. "Jamar's room is right across the hall from me and Jonas, with my hearing I could hear him fine, If he needed me. So whether YOU like it or not I'm going to stay in the room that I'm in. Now, We are done. I'm leaving." 

She got up and crossed the room. She opened the door and Slammed it shut as she left. She walked fuming down the hallway. She got to the kitchen and found Logan. 

"I see that Chuck brought up the idea of changing rooms to ya." Logan said as he saw her. 

"Yeah, and if thinks I'm changing, he's got another more painful thought coming." Sammi said sitting down in the chair. 

"You know besides me, I don't think anyone ever yelled at the professor like that." Logan said sitting down at the table with her. Looking at her he said, "You are alot like me, and I'm starting to think of you as a daughter, so do me a favor?" 

"Sure. What?" 

"Stop acting so much like me." He said smiling. 

Sammi started laughing. he handed her a soda and they had a nice Father, Daughter moment. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~X-Mansion, Maria and Cyclops~_**

Scott stood there almost stunned. He had endured many odd and strange things that would be considered fiction. Space, time travel, and loss and found. "He's... alive?! HE'S ALIVE?!" 

Maria clamped her hand around the man's mouth. "Shhhh... if anyone else knows I squealed, I'm dead." 

Scott gently removed Maria's hand over his mouth and asked, "Why are you telling me if you wanted to keep it a secret?" 

"I have a sister." Maria explained, "A younger sister. We don't exactly get along too well sometimes but I always worry about her if I'm not there. If I lost my sister, I would feel awful. In fact, if I knew she was alive if I thought she was dead, I would be happy. Because there's a chance of her coming back. I just have to tell you because I can relate to you from an outsiders point of view." 

"Thanks." Scott said as he hugged her. 

Maria swallowed as she returned the hug. "No problem." 

"Can I ask you another question?" 

"Shoot." 

"Why do you and the others keep on staring at me like I'm a ghost?" 

**Maria Cline**

Leilee bounced in. "Hey Y'all! Whazzup!" She had changed out of her midnight blue two-piece uniform and into Black pants and a blue handkerchief shirt. Her long brown hair hung down her back, and her brown eyes were shining. 

Cyclops stared at her. "What happened to you?" 

Leilee grinned. "Found Jubilee's sugar stash. We're all going out to a club! Wanna come? It'll help us bond. PLEEEEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZZZZZEEEEE?????" 

**Leilee**

Leilee came bounding into the kitchen to find Logan and Sammi talking. Sammi looked as if she had been crying, so Leilee said," Sammi? Are you Ok?" 

Sammi turned to her and said, " Yeah,I'm fine. I've been bonding. Father-Daughter like with Logan. What are you up to besides about 5lbs. of sugar?" 

Logan looked at Leilee and said, "You found one of Jubilee's stashes, didn't you?" Leilee just did the mad sugar rush very fast head bob, and said," Yup. And now I want to dance. You coming?" 

Sammi looked at Logan with the puppy dog eyes, and He melted. "Sure, darlin'. But you be careful. Or you're going to answer to me, got it?" 

"Sure thing, pop." Sammi said as she jumped up and hugged him. Scott was coming around the corner and his jaw dropped. The only one that Logan ever let hug him like that was Jubilee or Kitty, and now Sammi. 

"What's going on in here?" Scott asked about the hug. 

"Jeeze, Scott, can't a girl hug the closest thing she has had for a father in over 14 years without someone making a debate about it?" Sammi said to a now flabbergasted Cyclops. 

"Go, Darlin'. Before he starts a lecture." Sammi and Leilee ran to her and Jonas' room. 

"Let's see if Jubilee got me anything for clubbing?" Sammi said as she unpacked the bag of clothes that Jubes got her while they were at the mall. 

"So is Jonas coming?" Leilee asked. 

"I don't know." She said as she dug, "Oh, this isn't working." She started pulling things out of the bag. "Jeans, no. Shirts, no. OOHH, Leather Blazer Jacket. Leilee, remind me to buy Jubes something, next time we go to the mall." 

"Sure, no prob." Leilee said as she helped put away the clothes that Sammi was pulling out of the bag. 

"I found it! I love Jubes." Sammi said as she ran into the bathroom. "Leilee, see if she got me boots." 

Leilee looked in the boxes of shoes. She opened a big box and said," Black Knee-Tie boots. Is that what you wanted?" 

"Perfect." Sammi said as she came out of the bathroom in a short purple tank dress that tied in the front. Over that she had the blazer and she left her hair down. 

"WoW!" Leilee said," Jonas is going to flip." 

"You really think so?" Sammi said as she put the boots on. She stood up and walked back into the bathroom to put on her make up. /Just a little. Don't want to draw attention from the clothes./ She thought to herself. 

"OK. I'm ready. Let's see if Jonas wants to go." Sammi said as she and Leilee went down the hall. "But first to the kitchen, I want a Father's opinion about this outfit." Sammi said with an evil grin. 

They walked into the kitchen. Logan and Scott were sitting at the table with Bobby, Remy, Jean, and Rogue. Logan had his back to her but when she walked in, Bobby's eyes bugged out at both of the girls. Remy dropped the cigarette that was in his mouth. Rogue and Jean started clapping and saying, " I love that outfit." And "Can I borrow that, sugar?" Scott turned and his jaw dropped again. 

Logan seeing the looks on the others faces slowly turned, looked at Leilee and then Sammi, and his eyes bugged, " No way! I take it back. You are not leaving the house in that. Over my dead body!"he said. 

"The perfect father reaction. I'll see you later, Logan." Sammi said as she bent and gave him a kiss on the check. "Bye." And she and Leilee were off to find the others. 

**jubilee_79**

As the two girls walked out, Leilee peeked back over her bare shoulder, which revealed a black rose tattoo. "Sammi.....You know what....? I got an idea." Leilee turned all the way around. "Hey, Remy! Wanna come? WE need somebody to protect our honor. Besides. By the time I get ready, you'll be ready to go." 

"I don' know, chere." 

Leilee sighed. "Sil vous plais, Remy? Je veux dancer! Je me sens toujours meilleur quand je danse. Et a un club? Nous avons besoin de quelqu'un la pour nous observer et pour nous proteger de pauvres filles sans defense. Vous pouvez danser avec nous, et boire, et la fumee. Ce sera amusement! Allons!" {{Please Remy? I want to dance! I feel better when I dance! And at a club? We need someone there to watch us and protect us poor defenseless girls. You can dance, and drink and smoke. It'll be fun!}} 

Remy grinned He never could resist a girl who spoke french like that. "OK! Ok, Je viendrai, Donnez moi dix minutes." {{Ok! Ok, I'll come. Give me 10 minutes.}} 

Leilee grinned as she ran off to finish changing. "Sweet!" 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Back in the Medlab, one Cara worriedly paced up and down the floor. The other Cara watched her 'twin' from her relaxed position on one of the tables. She was feeling very strange... 

/You know something?/ she thought to herself, /I really don't like the name Cara. I think I'll call myself Arac instead./ 

Cara stopped pacing; she didn't know what the other Cara was thinking, or feeling. It was very strange to her. 

She walked over to the other girl, and stood in front of her. 

"Beast is worried about us, and I don't like to worry anyone..." Cara told the other one with a frown on her face. "Even though Jamie Madrox hasn't arrived yet, I think we should try again to pull ourselves back together into one person. People would stop worrying then." 

/Crimeny! Am I REALLY this whiney?/ thought Arac to herself, /I'll have to do something about that.../ 

She controlled her temper, and nodded at Cara. She didn't like people worrying about her either, it annoyed her to be fawned over. 

Arac got down from the table, and stood face to face with Cara. They took each other's hands, closed their eyes, and concentrated with all of their might... Then screamed in agony as they merged once more into one person. 

The newly re-merged Cara fell to the floor; her whole body shaking from the painful experience; but at least, she was whole... or so she thought. 

Somewhere in the back of her mind, a new voice made its presence known... 

^My name is ARAC!^ the voice cried...then was silent once more... 

/What was that!/ thought Cara, worriedly. She concentrated, but could not hear anything more in her head...all seemed normal to her. 

/I guess it was nothing!/ she thought. /Well, I don't see the need to worry anyone, so I'll keep what just happened to myself...I'm sure it was just a fluke./ 

She got up off of the floor, and ran out of the medlab in search of Beast, to show him that she was, once again, herself. 

As Cara rounded a corner, she bumped into Gambit; he had been on his way to see if she was okay, before he left with the others. 

"Well, you look nice!" she grinned at the Cajun, "Got a Hot Date?" 

"Yes, with some very Lovely Ladies..." Gambit grinned back at the girl. "Gambit is taking Leilee, Sammi and the others to a club." 

"A CLUB? REALLY? CAN I GO?" a very excited Cara asked. 

Gambit stopped smiling, and looked at the girl with a frown on his face. 

"Non, Mon Petit'..." he told Cara, placing one hand under her chin, "Gambit tink's you're too young to go to this club. If you be a good girl, Gambit will bring someting nice home for you...Non?" He smiled patronizingly at the girl. 

Cara was upset."But Gambit! I'm not a Kid! I'm Seventeen-" 

She was cut off rather abruptly by Gambit. 

"NON!" he told a stunned Cara with a frown on his face."You are not going!!! Not another word!" he finished, placing an index finger to her lips to silence any further protests. 

He turned around, and went in search of the others, leaving a gaping Cara behind. 

"Who does he think he is...my brother?!" a very upset and disappointed Cara said out loud. "I really wanted to go to that club too!!!" she muttered, looking down at the ground. 

^whine whine whine...is that all you can do?^ a voice in her head said. ^If you really want to go to the club, just go! You don't need Gumbo's permission!!!^ 

"You're right..." Cara softly said to herself, "I don't need his permission!" 

She looked up in the direction that Gambit had gone. 

"Well, Gumbo, I'm going to that club anyway...and there is nothing that you can do to stop me!!!" she said to the air, with a dangerous look in her eyes. She turned and went in the direction of her room... she had to find something to change into. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas had been going around the mansion looking for Sammi, he didn't have his Dragon sense of smell... Jamar was sleeping, she was not in their room, where could she be? 

He opened the door to the kitchen to find Logan, Scott, Bobby, Jean and Rogue, they were talking, overlapping each other. 

"Wow, this is all I claim to say..." Bobby said and whistled. Scott was talking to Jean. "...I don't think it would be wise to have them running around outside the mansion, we have no way to protect them... remember the mall." 

Jean responded. "Scott, we can't have them locked up in here, if they want to go out and have some fun... let them, besides they need to get away." 

Rogue and Logan's conversation was a little more heated, they were standing chest to chest. 

"I'm telling ye, it that kid so much as looks at her the wrong way, or touches her in a way that she don't like, I'm going to gut him AND ye." 

"Ah don't think so sugar, but if that girl of yours breaks his heart, ah will knock you both out..." 

"Oh, well he can't handle her..." Logan and Rogue continued to trade words and Jean and Scott was debating the finer points of wrong and right. 

He stood for a moment, letting the scene play out a little before... 

"Hey, any of you seen Sammi around... I can't find her." 

Everyone in the room turned to him, with a look that made him back up a little, he bumped into someone. 

"You found me Jonas..." Sammi said and placed a hand on his shoulder. 

Jonas turned around... Bobby was right. "Wow." that was a weary good word... but it didn't come close to the sight before him. 

He swallowed marveling at the beauty before him... /that... dress... sigh.../ He thought a smile creeping up on him. 

"Nice, really nice, incredible, fantastic... WOOOOOW!!!!" was all Jonas managed to say as he could hear Logan growl And Rogue sigh. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria had gone invisible as she went to her room and changed into a dress that she had fallen in love with. It was similar to the dress she had back home. It had gone great with the pair of white shoes and necklace she also bought with Xavier's credit card. She had never gone to a club before and she felt nervous. 

She entered the kitchen again to see Jonas and Sammi watching Rogue, Logan, Scott and Jean arguing about the club thing. 

"I just don't want any of them to get hurt." Scott argued. "They may know things about this world, but they are still strangers." 

"We'll be fine." Maria reasoned as everyone looked at the young girl. 

"Wow." Bobby muttered as Jean and Rogue smiled at her. 

"Thanks." Maria said as she turned around. "We'll be fine. If it eases your mind, you and a couple of other X-Men can tag along and we'll bring some communicators in case a super villain shows up." 

Scott rubbed his head and sighed. "Okay, fine. Jean, Rogue, and I will come along to make sure all of you are safe. If there's any trouble, I don't want any of you to get involved unless absolutely necessary." 

"How does she do that?" Bobby whispered to Logan. 

"I think Cyke's got a soft part for Maria." Logan replied. 

Jean glanced between the two and smirked. **Maria? Do you have a crush on Scott?" she asked telepathically. 

**NO!** Maria shouted out, **I'd never have a crush on a married guy.** Maria paused as she added, **Besides, I think that Nathan is cute. Can you have him join us?** 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas was getting ready to go out, Black was his color, everyone thought he was a heavy metal freak but that was not the reason at all, he just liked black. 

A pair of Black jeans, a black rather tight T-shirt and black leather boots. 

He looked in the mirror and smiled. 

/Regular bad ass./ He always wanted to dress like this, but never had the guts to do it. 

There was a knock on the door and he opened it. 

It was Jubilee. She looked at him for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. "Black? Your fashion sense is screaming {SAVE ME!} do ya know that?" 

Jonas smiled. "What do you want Jubilee, besides complaining about my taste in clothes." 

Jubilee held up a silver chain, on it hung a small silver object. 

Jonas gasped and grabbed it from her. "I thought I lost it at the mall, how did you find it?" "I just did, thought ya might want it back." Jubilee looked at it. "Mind if I ask what it is... first I thought it was a cross but it's a little strange." 

Jonas held it up. "It's a Tor's Hammer." 

Jubilee looked puzzled. 

Jonas explained in detail the northern mythology, Viking's and Tor or Thor as known to this world as the mighty avenger. And how the Tor's hammer was a symbol of strength, courage and honor. 

"My great, Great, Great grandfather was an archeologist, and this has been passed on from father to son in a line, but my grandfather died when I was really young." 

Jonas strapped the silver chain around his neck. "So My father gave it to me instead... to remind me of him, thanks, this is really important to me." 

"No prob, Just keep better track of it next time... when you turn in to a dragon." she smiled and ran jumping out of the door. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara made it to her room...she pounced on the bags of clothes that she had gotten at the mall the other day, and started dumping them all out on her bed. 

/I've never been clubbing before,/ she thought to herself, /so I don't know what is appropriate to wear...I'll just go with what I like, and won't mind if I stick out like a sore thumb.../ 

She finally decided on: 

a flared, knee-length red skirt with a dropped waist... 

a white sleeveless silk blouse... 

a white, suede leather jacket with short-sleeves... 

a pair of white, knee-high, high-heeled suede leather boots... 

and a pair of white leather half-gloves on her hands. 

Cara got dressed quickly, and brushed out her long dark hair...she decided to leave it down this time. 

She picked up the small velvet jewelry case that she got at the mall...almost as an after-thought... she didn't really have any jewelry back home. But, she figured that tonight would be a good night as any to wear what was inside. 

She went into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror; opened up the jewelry box, and took out a delicate gold necklace. 

On the fine chain was a light golden rose, with a single crystal teardrop on one of the petals. 

She put on the necklace, applied a little lipstick to her full lips, and she was all set... 

/Now, all I need to do is call a cab, and have it meet me about a quarter of a mile up the road from the mansion./ she thought to herself. /I don't want ANYONE to see me leave...they'd only try to stop me./ 

^That's the ticket!^ said the voice inside her head... 

On her way out of her room, Cara picked up a pair of sunglasses from the dresser... 

/If Scott can get away with wearing them at night, so can I!/ She thought to herself as she put them on. 

**Rainfall**

Leilee walked in. "Cara! You look great! Wait up for a sec while I change. We can go out together." she said as she slipped out of her black pants and into a black hoochie skirt (The kind that only reaches the upper thigh) and Knee high black boots. "Much better." 

Cara frowned. "Remy said I couldn't go." 

Leilee whirled around. "Why not?" 

"I'm 17." 

Leilee shook her head. "Come on. You're coming. I've been clubbing since I was 15. Just don't drink anything alcoholic, and your cool. I'll talk to Remy." she said, grinning. "And, if he has a problem, I'll.....convince him." 

Cara laughed. "I knew there was a reason I loved having you as a roomie." 

**Leilee**

Cara waited while Leilee changed...What an AWESOME friend Leilee was! 

**Rainfall**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

"Now is everyone clear on the plan?" Sinister looked across the room, no one seemed to be paying much attention to what he had said but sighed as everyone nodded that the understood. "This next attack cannot be as big of a disaster as the last time. So unless anyone has any questions you are all dismissed." With that everyone got up and headed out of the room. 

Mystique took Ryan aside "You look like you could use a little fun. How about tonight we go dancing? Relax a little before the next attack and maybe pick up on some cute guys." 

Ryan smiled "Sounds like fun! Just let me go change." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan was busy going through the clothes she had bought earlier trying to figure out what to wear. She finally decided on hip hugging snakeskin tight pants. She fell in love with them in the store because they showed of her six-pack stomach and the tattoo and piercing that decorated her belly button. She then decided on a black leather bra top because well it showed off everything including the tattoo on her back. 

/Now what to do with my hair,/ she thought. 

She decided to go for fun and put the long blonde locks into pigtails on each side of her head. 

/I love easy./ she thought to herself. 

For make up she decided to go with smoldering eyes… dark and lethal. She put on very light blush to give her face a little color and a light glossy nude lipstick on her full lips. Her lips were big enough as it was and dark colors just made them look huge. 

Finally she was done and met Mystique out in the front hall. Sabertooth was talking too her with his back turned to Ryan. When he caught her scent he turned around and his face turned to a cold expression. 

"Have fun you two" Was all he said and then quickly left the room. There is no way I am letting them go out alone dressed like that, he thought to himself. He had quickly made up his mind to follow them. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Maria smiled as she looked in the mirror checking on her face. "Okay. Good." 

Maria glanced at her reflection and recalled how in the comics, Susan was able to cause only parts of her body invisible. "Hmmm..." Maria said as she focused on her glasses. They vanished on her face and she smiled. "Cool." 

"Hey, remember me!" Amanda yelled out as she came out of the closet. She was wearing a short black dress and a matching black jacket. "Sorry. Man, I thought that I was the invisible girl. You look great." 

"So do you. Where's your glasses?" 

Maria pointed to her eyes and the glasses reappeared. "Isn't it great? I'm really getting the hang of this power thing." 

"That's good. I heard about how you managed to get Scott to let us go." 

"Yeah, well I heard about how you and Xavier is getting along." 

"Yeah. This will be so much fun. I just hope that our escorts won't be dull." 

Maria smirked as she said, "I'm sure that Scott has a wild side if we dig deep enough." 

"Let's go and meet with the others." Amanda said as she and Maria ran downstairs to the living room to meet with the others. 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"But, Logan." Sammi whined in a little girl voice. 

"That's that. Final. If you want to go I'm coming too. No more arguments. Got me, kid?" Logan said with his arms crossed over his chest. Sammi was standing across from him the same way, and neither of them were going to budge. 

"I told you. I'M NOT A KID!!!" Sammi yelled and then Jonas put his hand on her shoulder and whispered in her ear, "If he wants to come let him." Then he pointed to his head. Sammi understood, and she switched over to her new telepathy and said, "If he comes I'm ditching him when I get a chance, you in?" 

Jonas just nodded. Jean tried not to laugh as she watched the two. She'd have to help Sammi with her shields. ((I'LL help.)) She said in their heads. Sammi and Jonas nodded. 

"What are you three cooking up?"Logan said looking between the three. 

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Sammi said putting on her sweet as candy face. "Fine. If want to come so bad, come, but you are behaving. Got me? No Fights! Absolutely, NO FIGHTS!!" 

"I'll be good, darlin'. I promise." Logan said as he left to get ready. 

Bobby just sat back in the chair and shook his head. " I don't know how she does it." 

"How who does what, Icepop?" Sammi asked. 

"How you get Logan to do, well, that?" 

"Its all in the charm." Sammi said grinning. 

**jubilee_79**


	9. Reality Bites-Part 9

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. Lyrics in this chapter were used without permission. They are, "Someone Else's Star"-by Skip Ewing/Jim Weatherly, "Endless Possibilities"-by ???, and "She's Like the Wind"-by Patrick Swayze. No money is being made off of this story.  
Authors: A.C., Admiral, Jason_Barnett, Chaos, Dreamweaver, Maria_Cline, jubilee_79, Lady_Yann, Le Fae, Leilee, Rainfall, riverdreamer, snowbaby, and TEB. 

**Reality Bites--Part 9**

Leilee grinned as they all piled up into the car. "Come on, Cara!!!!" 

Remy frowned. "I thought I said you couldn't come." 

Leilee stood up in front of him. "I said she could. Gotta problem?" 

Remy sighed. "Fine. Come on." 

Leilee grinned. "That's what I thought. Hey. Scott? Can I ask you something?" 

"Sure." 

"Is it true that you crossdressed in order to get into Studio 54, AND got numbers off of Bobby, Warren and Hank?" 

_*********NOTE******* _

If you don't get this, Look up Maria Cline's Studio 54 at Fanfiction.net. It's a riot!!!!!! It's one of my FAVES! 

*****END NOTE***** 

**Leilee**

"Yeah, and did Bobby, Hank, Warren, and Johnny storm all kiss you?" Sammi said as she heard Leilee. Logan came up behind her and asked,"Where'd you hear that?" 

"Oh, some place on the internet," Sammi said smiling at Maria who was starting to turn invisible. 

**jubilee_79**

Everyone looked at Scott who was shocked... "No I never..." Jean looked at him smiling. "I didn't, I never did that... did I?." 

Jonas was laughing, slapping his knee. "That is a pretty ugly scene don't you think!" 

**Admiral**

Cara tried to say something; she had also read the story, but she couldn't say a word...she was laughing way too hard. 

"I don't think that the scene was THAT ugly!!!" Cara choked out when she finally managed to get some air into her lungs. "Scott, I'll bet you looked pretty cute in that outfit! Was Jean jealous? I would have loved to have seen that!!!" she said in a somewhat clearer voice, Her red eyes twinkled mischievously behind her sunglasses, and she was grinning from ear to ear. 

**Rainfall**

"I remember findin' that picture. Whatever happened to it?" Rogue said. 

"Ok!!! That's enough are we going clubbing or not?" Scott said changing the subject. 

"You are such a...um..Party Pooper!!!!" Sammi said starting to laugh again. 

"Everyone, In." Scott said and they all got into the cars and left. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Club Visione`~_**

The situation was a typical one for Ryan. She got to the club and started drinking early, tipping the bartender very well to ensure stronger drinks. By the time the club started to get packed she was feeling good… really good. So she decided to find someone to keep her company for the night. She began to scope out the club and saw a group of people she thought looked familiar but couldn't quite place where she had seen them before. 

"Well some of the guys look pretty cute…time for some fun!" she said to herself as she headed for the group. 

**Le Fae**

Maria was sitting in the corner as she sipped at her soda. Despite the fact that she is of legal age, she didn't drink. "This is nice." She said to herself as she looked up at a girl who was coming toward them. Maria glanced at the mirror to see her glasses gone and asked the girl, "Hey, how's it going?" 

"Nothing much." The girl replied as she tilted her head. "Say, have we met before?" 

Maria shook her head. "No, I just got into town." In her head, alarms were going off. She did look familiar but different. "What's your name?" **Maybe, it's some superhero in disguise.** she thought. 

"Ryan." She replied. 

"Ryan, nice name." Maria complimented. **It can't be a superhero, I don't know any superheroes named Ryan in secret.** 

"Where are you from?" 

"Indiana." Maria replied as she bit her lip. "You?" 

**Maria Cline**

Sammi and Jonas were at the bar with Logan and Rogue. Sammi took a sip of her drink, looking around. "Do any of you reconize that girl talking to Maria?" They all turned and looked at her. 

"No, darlin'. Why?" Logan asked. 

"I don't know. She just seems familier. Some how. Maybe its nothing. I want to dance. Com on." She said taking Jonas's arm. Logan shot them a dirty look and Sammi looked at him and Mouthed, "Be nice." Then she took Jonas out to the floor and they started dancing. 

"Well, I'd love to stay here and be all brooding, but I'm on a mission." Rogue said as she got up and walked over to the DJ. 

"Can I help you, miss?" The DJ asked. 

"Sure thing, Sugar. I know you don't normally play this kinda music, but can you do it for me?" 

"I'll play whatever you want." He said smiling at her. She leaned up and whispered something in his ear. 

"It would be my pleasure. Do you want it sent out to anyone?" 

"No. Just send it out to everyone who found what they have been wishing for, Ok, Sugar?" Rogue said with a wink. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi and Jonas were dancing when the song stopped and the DJ said, "Alright. This is a special request. I made a special exception for this one. It goes out to everyone who has finally found what they had been wishing for." 

A slow country song started, Jonas was about to walk back to the bar when Sammi grabbed his arm. 

He looked at her. "Dance with me?" She said. She recognized the song right off the bat. It was one of her favorites. 

"Sure." Jonas said as he hugged he close then he heard the words and knew why she wanted to dance. 

_Alone again tonight Without someone to love The stars are shining bright So one more wish goes up Oh, I wish I may And I wish I with all my might For the love I'm dreaming of And missing in my life_

Jonas hugged Sammi tighter and she did the same. 

_You'd think that I could find A true love of my own It happens all the time To people that I know Their wishes all come true So I've got to believe There's still someone out there who Is meant for only me_

Sammi was so happy. She finally found what she had been looking for, a family and someone to love. Sammi whispered in Jonas's ear "I love you." 

_I guess I must be wishin' On someone else's star It seems like someone else Keeps getting what I'm wishin' for Why can't I be as lucky as those other people are I guess I must be wishin' On someone else's star_

Jonas was in heaven. He felt like he belonged and he found the love he had been searching for. He whispered in Sammi's ear, "I love you, too." 

_I sit here in the dark And stare up at the sky But I can't give my heart One good reason why Everywhere I look It's lovers that I see Seems like everyone's in love With everyone but me_

Jonas and Sammi held each other tight. 

_Why can't I be as lucky As those other people are Oh I guess I must be wishin' On someones else's star_

The song ended and they looked at each other. "Let's get out of here." Sammi said and Jonas led them to the backdoor. 

**jubilee_79**

Leilee was sitting at the table, sipping a strawberry daqueri. So what if she was only 18? She drank Greek wine every night at dinner. She had convinced the cute bartender to let her have one. She was bored. Sammi and Jonas had finally slipped out. ((Goddess. How long were they gonna take?)) she thought. 

She turned to see Cara sitting next to her, poking at her Pepsi and looking bored as well. Leilee sighed. "Cara, can I talk to you?" 

"Sure. Wassup, girl?" 

"I have a slight prob. I really am totally crushing on Remy. And I don't know what to do." 

Cara's jaw dropped open. "You? Leilee, the big mouth who told Wolverine, and I quote, 'Bite me, Barky' and lived? You????" 

Leilee blushed. "Yeah. Me. I hate talking to guys. I get defensive." 

Cara looked at her. "Ask him to dance." 

Leilee looked troubled at the idea, but grinned as Jennifer Lopez's "Feeling So Good" came on. "Hey, Cara," she asked, "Wanna dance?" 

Cara looked up and smiled. "YEAH!" 

As they stepped on the floor and started to move to the beat of the music, the girls began to laugh and sing. 

_"When I open up my eyes today Felt the sun shining on my face It became so clear to me that everything is going my way _

I feel like there's no limit to what I can see Got rid of fears that were holding me My endless possibilities Has the whole world open for me That's why I'm feeling 

I'm feeling so good I knew I would Been taking care of myself Like I should 'Cause not one thing can bring me down Nothing in this world's gonna turn me round." 

At this point Jubilee, Maria and Amanda had come over and they were all dancing in a big group, laughing and singing. No worries, no fighting. For once, they were just jamming and having fun like the teens they were. 

_"Now the day is turning into night And everything is still going right There's no way you can stop me this time Or break this spirit of mine"_

Jean watched the group. Looks like they're having fun." 

Scott nodded. "I've never seen them so relaxed. And, look! Leilee's actually smiling." 

Meanwhile, the girl bopped around under the watchful X-people's eyes, still singing loudly. 

_"Like the stars above I'm gonna shine Anything I want will be mine Tonight I'm gonna have a good time Call a few friends of mine 'Cause tonight I'm loving life And tonight's for feeling _

I'm feelin so good I knew that I would Been taking care of myself Like I should 'Cause not one thing Can bring me down Nothing in this world's gonna turn me round..." 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan was about to go over and distract the pair about to exit the room but Rogue Grabbed him by the shoulder. 

"Not fair Sugar, let them have their moment, it's the right thing... and ya know it." She said and looked over at them as Jonas and Sammi exited the club. 

"There is something about them, about all of them." Logan said and grabbed his beer. "Like they know more about us the we know our self... it will put them in danger." 

"Don't worry about that sugar, why don't you get out on the floor instead." Rogue started tugging at him. 

"Nope, not tonight Darlin', I'm going to hang here and keep an eye on everyone." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas and Sammi rested back on a bench outside the club, holding hands looking at the incredible starlight night, the perfect scene. It was a feeling of completement, the feeling that they was both where they was supposed to be, that a circle was complete, or broken. 

At this moment all was clear, nothing would ruin this, the moment of love so tight that one could reach up around them and grab on to it. Jonas opened his eye's taking in the beautiful sight of her face against the star filled sky. 

"You wanna go somewhere special?" Jonas asked and stood up holding both her hands. 

"Where?" Sammi asked and smiled. Jonas smiled and stepped back pulling her to her feet. 

"A surprise, somewhere we are completely alone, somewhere we can sit and watch the sky, and forget every worry... for a minute of two." 

Sammi walked close and put her arm's around him. 

"That would be nice." she leaned in and kissed him. 

Jonas pulled away from her, and hugged her back. "Hold on." 

Sammi felt them rise to the air, she locked eyes with him as they slowly lifted higher and higher. 

"What if someone see us." She teased. 

"Do it matter?" he asked and kissed her again as they disappeared in to the night. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

As the song ended, Gambit walked up to where the girls were dancing... 

"Would any of you lovely ladies like to dance with Gambit?" he asked, with a boyish smile on his face. 

Cara's eyes twinkled... she nudged Leilee with her elbow; Leilee looked at her, her eyes wide... she shook her head quickly. 

Cara leaned over and whispered, "Go on! How often do you get a chance to dance with the 'Smooth Talking Hormone on Legs'?" Cara grinned, "I got that from Sammi, by the way." 

Leilee still wasn't going to dance, and Remy was still waiting. Cara looked up and caught Gambit's eye, then motioned at Leilee...Gambit took the hint, and walked up to Leilee...He held out his hand; Leilee cautiously took it, her eyes wide. She looked back at Cara, who was grinning from ear to ear... 

"I can't believe you just did that!" Leilee mouthed at Cara. 

Cara grinned wider. "Have fun!" she mouthed back at Leilee, and winked. 

Leilee looked back up at Gambit. He led Leilee to the middle of the dance floor; a slow song was playing. Gambit pulled Leilee close; she leaned her head on his shoulder, still wondering exactly what happened. And they danced, rocking back and forth, listening to the words of the song as it played. 

_She's like the wind through my tree She rides the night next to me She leads me through moonlight Only to burn me with the sun She's taken my heart But she doesn't know what she's done _

Feel her breath on my face Her body close to me Can't look in her eyes She's out of my league Just a fool to believe I have anything she needs She's like the wind 

I look in the mirror and all I see Is a young old man with only a dream Am I just fooling myself That she'll stop the pain Living without her I'd go insane 

Feel her breath on my face Her body close to me Can't look in her eyes She's out of my league Just a fool to believe I have anything she needs She's like the wind 

Feel her breath on my face Her body close to me Can't look in her eyes She's out of my league Just a fool to believe She's like the wind 

Just a fool to believe She's like the wind 

Just a fool to believe She's like the wind 

Just a fool to believe She's like the wind 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"That was fun." Maria said as she sat down next to Ryan. "So, why didn't you dance?" 

"I danced already." 

"Got a boyfriend?" 

"Nope. I just broke up with my last one. He cheated on me and I... nah. You wouldn't understand." 

"Maybe I will. I am fairly empathic." Maria said as she smiled toward the girl. 

Ryan sighed and figured that since no one had any records of her, she couldn't be convicted. "I set fire to his house." 

Maria blinked and asked, "What? You _set fire_ to his house?!" 

"Yeah, the police just didn't understand." 

"I'm sorry you got in trouble." 

"I'm having a very bad week. I shouldn't be dumping on you like this." 

"No, that's okay. I don't mind it. Say, why don't I introduce you to some of my friends?" 

"Why not? Hey, Mystique!" 

A woman about late twenties walked up to them as Maria grew nervous. She didn't recognize the shapeshifter's face but she did recognize the name. "Yes?" she asked. 

**Maria Cline**

"So you're from Indiana! Wow… I could never live in a place so far from a good wave. I love to surf I picked it up when I was a kid, to keep away from all the gangs and stuff. California has a lot of them." Ryan was beginning to like this girl, she was nice and listened to what she had to say. 

Most girls Ryan knew where catty. They would either treat her like a blonde bimbo with no brain or act like she was going to steal their boyfriends. The ones that weren't like that would sleep with HER boyfriends. This girl seemed different. She made a mental note that if people from Indiana were this nice, she would have to go visit. 

As the girls began walking towards Maria's friends, Maria grew nervous. Ryan could see it on her face. She was really nice until Mystique came over. Maybe Mystique slept with one of her friend's boyfriends. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Twenty-two year old Athena woke with a start, she had that dream again, the one where she was falling. Spiraling through the unending depths of some dark abyss, only to awaken with a scream. That dream usually signaled the beginning of a very bad day. Groggily she reached in the direction of her clock, on the bedside table. No clock. 

No clock, it took a moment to register in her sleep fogged mind. Suddenly she sat bolt upright in bed, eyes flying open, only to find she was not in her bed. She wasn't even in a bed period! She had to calm down, she had to think, she had to figure out where she was. 

A tree, she was in a tree. A TREE!!! She couldn't help herself, she screamed. And knocked herself out of the tree in the process. Her long red hair tangling in some of the branches on the way down, only making her scream louder. She only stopped screaming when she hit the ground and saw a boot. 

**snowbaby**

"Stars and garters! Not again!" 

Athena looked up to see two figures standing above her one had brown hair and looked like an average guy, but the other.... was blue and hairy. Athena's jaw literally dropped and she quickly fainted. 

"Hank you really need to stop scaring the newbies like that..." 

"My apologies Robert but how was I supposed to know the young lady would drop from the tree like that. I supposed we should take her to the med lab to be checked out." 

**Le Fae**

**_~GenX School~_**

Angelo and Ev were outside the school while Angelo was having a smoke. 

"When do you think they will stop coming??"asked Ev. 

"I don't know amigo, but I wouldn't mind a few more hot Chicas." 

With that a figure fell from the sky right in front of the boys. 

The figure was wearing extremely baggy clothes. A baggy black hoodie and big baggy green pants with a black baseball cap covering its face. 

"*sigh* Here we go again." Ev walked over to the new arrival. 

"Ow ...what the.." Teb huffed. 

"Hola" Angelo snickered bitterly. He wanted another girl to come. 

"What?" Teb looked up "Oh, it's you......WHAT THE HELL!?" 

"Easy amigo. we're not going to hurt you. though it would be must more interesting if you were a girl." 

"Uhhhh, Ange?" 

"Urrgghhh!!!!" Teb whipped her hat off showing her punk red shoulder long hair. 

**TEB**

**_~Club Visione`~_**

"Hi Maria! Who's your friend?" Cara said, smiling at the two girls. "This is Ryan," said Maria. She seemed a bit nervous as another woman joined their group. 

Cara smiled at Ryan, and held out her hand, saying "Hi Ryan! I'm Cara. This is Leilee and Amanda. Are you having a good time?" 

Ryan nodded, and shook Cara's hand; she seemed familiar somehow, but Ryan couldn't place the face... 

/Oh well,/ thought Ryan, /she seems nice enough.../ 

Just then, Savage Garden's 'Crash and Burn' song began to play... 

Cara's face fell..."Dang it! That's one of my favorite songs, and there isn't anyone to dance with! And I like dancing!!! I haven't danced all night...every time someone comes my way, Gambit stares them down!" 

**Rainfall**

"I can take care of that! Now who is this Gambit guy?" Ryan asked Cara. 

"He's the one standing over there, why?" 

"Oh, he's cute! Do you see a guy you want to dance with?" 

"Well, that guy standing in the corner is pretty cute." Cara said pointing to a tall good-looking man n the corner. 

He had on black leather pants and a tight black long sleeve shirt. He had the perfect frame muscular but not too the point that he looked like an over grown gorilla. You could tell that he had a nice cut frame. His black hair was spiked in a wild kind of way and his light brown eyes where warm and inviting. 

"Nice choice" Ryan stated her approval. " Well start heading over to him and ask him to dance. I will keep your friend distracted!" 

With that Ryan started walking over to this "Gambit" person and asked him if he would dance with a poor lonely girl. 

"Chere I don' tink you been lonely ever but all right" With that Ryan pulled him over to the other side of the dance floor so he couldn't see Cara and the hottie dancing. 

**Le Fae**

Cara watched as Ryan dragged Gambit off to the other side of the room. 

/Wow! She is totally COOL!/ Cara thought. 

She looked over at the man standing in the corner. Her mouth ran dry, and her heart began to pound... 

/Great! Just when I finally get a chance to dance with someone, I get an attack of nerves!/ she thought with annoyance. 

/Well, I'm going to ask him anyway!/ she finally decided. 

She took one more look in Gambit and Ryan's direction, turned around and walked over to the man. 

She tapped him on the shoulder, he looked down at her... 

"Hi! Would you like to dance?" Cara asked, smiling sweetly and showing her dimples... 

**Rainfall**

**_~GenX School~_**

Teb was mad. Teb was very, very mad. 

"You thought I was a GUY?!?" 

"Honestly Chica, I could not see you...oh my g** your face!!" 

"WHAT ABOUT IT?!?" Teb snapped. 

"Well, I guess we know her power." Ev said. 

"Oh my g**... my skin is melting...what do I do?!? What's going on?!? HELP!!" 

"Concentrate Chica, just focus." 

Teb thought real hard and her skin tightened up. 

"Ok....ok..." she looked around at the boys who were just staring at her. /how can this be?!? Am I..... in a comic book??/ "Ev? Angelo?" 

"Si." 

"Hey Ange, I think we need to make a phone call." 

"I think I need to sit down." and with that she fainted. 

**TEB**

**_~Club Visione`~_**

Leilee sighed as she walked out of the club. It figured. She meets a cute guy who's not a total jerk, and a pretty girl snags him. ((Such is the story of my life.)) 

As she walked around the club's grounds she noticed Jonas and Sammi were nowhere to be seen. ((Wonder where those two went,)) she thought as she smiled wryly. 

She walked further back, towards the woods that lay behind the club. As she walked, she rolled her shoulders and circled her head, feeling the joints crack and pop. A side effect of 15 years of dancing. In the background, she could hear the savage garden music fading away. Good. Maybe they'd leave now. 

She had reached the edge of the woods, when she heard a rustling sound from the bushes to her right. "Sammi? Jonas?" She called . 

"Not quite, frail." spoke a gravelly voice from the darkness as the big figure stepped out into the moonlight. 

"Sabretooth. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap...." She whispered softly, backing away slowly. Yeah, Wolverine was one thing, but Sabretooth was another thing entirely. Wolverine wasn't a homicidal maniac. 

Sabretooth grinned at her and pounced. Leilee cringed away, turning her head and putting her hands up to absorb the impact. 

It never came. She turned to see, after a minute, and saw him laying on the ground, breathing evenly in what seemed to be a catatonic state. But it was his face that frightened her the most. It was still grinning evilly, growly and nightmarish. 

Seeing this, Leilee did the only natural thing a person did when she was attacked by a homicidal maniac, did something with her powers, but not knowing what, and knocking said maniac out cold. 

She screamed. Long, loud, piercing shrieks that shattered the quiet of the night, and were only interrupted by the sobs and gasps that escaped as tears fell down her cheeks and the shock set in. And still, the mindless shrieks continued, echoing into the night, carrying the sound of her panic and fear with them. 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara had enjoyed her dance with the Cute Guy; his name was Joe. They were both a little hot and out of breath; Joe asked her if she wanted to sit outside for a little while. She told him okay, and went outside with him while Gambit was still preoccupied. 

When they got outside however, Cara heard a high-pitched scream... 

"Oh NO!!! That sounds like Leilee!" she said worriedly, "Sorry Joe, but I've got to go!!!" 

And she ran into the woods... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda was enjoying the music...at least she was, until piercing screams began echoing on the psychic plane...crashing into her mind like the sound of a thousand mirrors breaking. 

She grabbed her head with both hands, and doubled over, falling to her knees on the ground. 

"Amanda! What's Wrong!" Maria said worriedly. 

The screams gradually receded from her mind, and Amanda looked up shakily at her friend. 

"Leilee is in trouble!" she said, "we've got to go help her!!" 

Maria helped Amanda to her feet, and they made their way outside. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara came crashing through the bushes, scaring the heck out of Leilee... and almost tripping over some huge guy who was lying on the ground. 

"LEILEE!" said a very worried and frantic Cara, her eyes moving back and forth between the man on the ground, and her frightened friend, "Are you--Oh MY HECK!!!" she said, her eyes opening huge and round as she realized who the fallen man was. 

"That's-that's-THAT'S SABERTOOTH!!! WHAT'S HE DOING HERE!!!" she frantically asked a shaken Leilee. 

Leilee opened her mouth to speak, but no words would come out. 

"It's okay...You'll be okay..." Cara told the girl. 

She took one more look at Sabertooth, then took Leilee by the arm. 

"Come on! We've got to go back and tell the others, before HE wakes up!" she said, as she started to pull the shaking girl in the direction of the club. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Gambit and Ryan were still dancing when Ryan saw Cara leave with that guy. Ryan had a natural distrust of men so she told Gambit that she was tired of dancing and followed Cara and the guy outside. She didn't want anything bad to happen to this girl because of her. 

As she was exiting the club, she heard a high-pitched scream and ran in the direction of the scream. She was ready to turn that guy into toast and eat him if he hurt that girl. Instead when she came to the clearing, she saw Victor on the floor twitching and Cara and some other girl standing next to him. 

"What did you guys do to Victor?" Ryan asked obviously upset with the situation. 

"You know this creep!?" Cara said shocked that this girl seemed so concerned about Sabertooth's well being. 

"Yeah, he is a friend of mine! What did you do to him?" Ryan was getting even angrier by the second and showed no signs of calming down. 

**Le Fae**

"He attacked my friend!" said Cara. She too was getting angrier by the minute. 

**Rainfall**


	10. Reality Bites-Part 10

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.  
Authors: A.C., Admiral, Jason_Barnett, Chaos, Dreamweaver, Maria_Cline, jubilee_79, Lady_Yann, Le Fae, Leilee, Rainfall, riverdreamer, snowbaby, and TEB.   
Notes: This chapter has been slightly revised from the original. 

**Reality Bites--Part 10**

"Look... he needs some help, and your 'friend' looks like she is going to cry, and I hate it when people cry." Ryan stated. "Let's take this inside and get one of your big male friends to help me carry him to the car." 

**Le Fae**

Cara bit back a tart reply, and after a moment, she nodded her agreement. Leilee's well-being was more important right then than a fight. And as Ryan said, they could finish this inside... 

Cara wrapped an arm around Leilee's shoulders and began to lead her towards the club. A fuming Ryan followed close behind... after seeing what had happened to Sabretooth, she wasn't about to let these two out of her sight. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda and Maria reached the edge of the woods, just as Cara and Leilee emerged. Amanda was in shock over Leilee's appearance. 

"Leilee! What happened?" she asked, worried. 

Leilee shook her head and whimpered. 

"Cara?" Amanda tried again. 

"Don't ask," came Cara's sharp reply. 

She led Leilee past Amanda and Maria, across the parking lot towards the club. She was in no mood to talk right then. 

Amanda blinked in surpise; she didn't know Cara very well, but she had a feeling that wasn't exactly normal for her. Before she could say anything, Ryan appeared out of the woods. She glanced suspiciously at Amanda and Maria as she strode past, following Cara and Leilee. 

Amanda and Maria looked at each other, and shrugged. Wordlessly, they turned and followed the others to the club. 

**Rainfall**

Leilee was still crying and shaking as Cara gently led her into the club and over to a seat. Her whimpers were soft, and indistinguishable from the music and chatter. Leilee closed her eyes and started to rock back and forth. 

Cara ran over to the X-men and filled them in on what happened. As they went off to get the others, Gambit ran over to Leilee and lifted her to his lap, holding her gently and rocking her back and forth, soothing her. "Shhh, Petite. It's ok. C'est bien. Gambit est ici. Everything will be ok now." 

Leilee looked up at him and felt tears fill her eyes once more. "Can we please go home now?" 

Gambit nodded solemnly and wrapped his coat around her. He then led her outside to wait for the others. 

**Leilee**

Inside the Club, Cara and Ryan got into a little more heated conversation. 

"So, what, she makes the guy catatonic? What happened to kicking the guy in the privates and running away?" 

Ryan knew that Victor had attacked the girl, with his past it was a given fact. Ryan also knew that she had to have done something to make him do it or she had to be someone he didn't like. She just couldn't figure it out right now. 

/I wish I were a little more sober right now,/ she thought to herself. If she were sober she would be able to figure out what was going on and why these people looked so familiar. 

**Le Fae**

Cara was fuming. The girl she thought of as a new friend was friends with Sabertooth...she was very angry; she felt betrayed somehow...and Arac was using her negative emotions to feed itself; Arac was trying to take over. 

"The guy attacks my friend, and YOU BLAME HER! The guy is a total CREEP! He doesn't care WHO he hurts! How could you CARE about that guy! How could you even get involved with a creep like that!" she said sharply. For some reason, she wanted to take this girl out... 

Cyclops and Mystique stepped in between the two girls...The two of them had managed to put Sabertooth into the car, and Mystique was in hurry to get out of the club... 

"Come on Ryan, we need to go..." she said to Ryan. She leaned a little closer and whispered so only Ryan could hear, "The boss will want to know about this." 

"Come on Cara, the others are waiting..." Cyclops said to Cara. 

**Rainfall**

Mystique gave Ryan a sharp look and Ryan nodded. 

"I don't know how you know Victor but he is a lot nicer then you think he is! He is the nicest guy I know!" Ryan was screaming and on the verge of tears. Mystique had to pull her out of the club. 

**Le Fae**

Cara was fuming as she walked out of the club; of all the nerve of that girl! How could she be so rude after being nice to her earlier!!! 

When Cara got to the car, she saw Amanda, Maria and a few of the others, but she didn't see Sammi or Jonas. Gambit was in the back seat, holding a sleeping Leilee; and Gambit was whispering in french to her as he stroked her head. Cara started to feel a little jealous; Arac was getting a stronger foothold on her conscious mind. She got in the car, and stared out the window, ignoring everyone else. 

**Rainfall**

Maria sighed as she closed her eyes wearily. She never felt so torn before. On one hand, Lielee was seriously traumatized by Sabertooth but Creed was also a good friend of Ryan's. She had seen comics in which Creed had shown some humanity and Ryan did need someone after what happened to her. 

Maria looked at Cara who was also quiet. "Cara?" Maria asked. 

Cara didn't reply as Maria looked down to see that she's visible. "You okay?" 

Cara glanced at Maria with strange eyes. An all to strange feeling shivered down her back. "Yes." she replied. 

"Where's Jonas and Sammi?" Maria asked almost bewildered. 

"We'll find them but first, you must go back to the mansion. That girl you were talking to could be allying with Mystique and Sabertooth." Scott said as he watched the girl slowly vanish. 

"Ryan? A supervillian?" Maria recalled about how Ryan had told her about her setting fire to her boyfriend's house. "Say, do you think... that maybe... Ryan's from the same world that we are from?" 

**Maria Cline**

The group got back to the mansion to news that there was two new members. one there and one at the school who would be brought the next day. 

Meanwhile, Teb was still unconscious and being taken care of by a very worried Angelo. 

**Teb**

**_==Hope's Entrance (told from her point of view)==_**

I wasn't sure how the experiment was going to work. The basic idea was that plants held small amounts of electrical energies, how did they use these energies was the thesis for my biology final. I never expected that I would get sucked down a vortex, nor did I expect to crack my head on a concrete stair. The last thing that I can remember is seeing a bunch of well-dressed people standing around and a very concerned Beast staring at me. 

***** 

I wake up trying to get my bearings. 

"Excuse me but I seem to have received a blow to the back of my cranium. I think that I might have sustained a concussion." I begin to mutter to myself about my pulse rate being rather high and distinctively having blurred vision. Which would substantiate my original prognosis. 

As I check over the rest of my body I notice that my normally honey colored tones are somewhat darker. At first I put it off to bad lighting till Beast moves back into the house, carrying me. At that point I realize that my skin is an apple shade of green. With that, I let out a shriek that I am sure the entire world can hear and faint. 

**Lady_Yann**

Beast shook his head worriedly as he carried the unconcious woman to the medlab. He did not know her name...but he thought she was beautiful. 

/Enough of that...I am a trained medical professional, and this woman is in need of care... I should not be thinking of her in any way other than that of a patient./ Beast told himself. 

Still, in his heart, he had already nicknamed her, Sleeping Beauty. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee woke up with a muffled scream as Gambit carried her down the hall to her and Cara's room. Upon seeing that it was Gambit carrying her, and not Sabretooth, she gently slipped out of his grasp to stand up and face him. 

They both stared at each other for a moment, not sure what to do, when Leilee stepped forward and hugged him tightly. They embraced for a moment before she stepped away. 

"Thank you," she whispered before walking into her room. 

**Leilee**

**_~Sammi and Jonas~_**

It was a chilly night, and it was getting a little cold as they were getting higher and higher, But Sammi didn't really mind. What was a little cold... When you were in the arms of a loved one? 

She put her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, and she felt Jonas do the same. 

/I hope he is not closing his eyes too./ she thought and smiled. 

Jonas held her hard, careful but hard, his arms around her waist to be sure that he would not drop her. 

Finally he found the destination, he was glad he always had good night vision. 

He sat them down on the ground, Sammi feeling relieved that they finally was having something under their feet. 

She parted from him, looking into his eyes, and then said the first words in a long moment. 

"So where are we?" she asked and ran her fingers threw his thick short hair. 

"Look around, I thought that without flying too far this is as private that we may get." 

Sammi looked around, there where on top of the Empire State Building. 

Jonas smiled at her. 

"Did I ever mention that I'm scared of heights?" Sammi said as she held Jonas closer. 

"We can go down if you like." He said afraid that he might have done this wrong. 

"Did I say anything about leaving this place? I'll be fine as long as you promise to catch me if I fall." Sammi said grabbing him by the neck pulling his face to hers 

"Nothing could stop me from catching you if you ever fell, but I must remind you." Jonas leaned in to kiss her. 

"I think I'm already falling... want to catch me?" he was about to kiss her but she pulled back. 

"No! I think I rather fall right along side of you." she kissed him. 

Here they were standing on the ledge of one of the most famous building's in the world, kissing, strangers in a strange world, every thing so different yet the same. 

Every thing was right nothing could ruin this... well almost nothing. 

Sammi smelled something a moment before... "Hello, I hope that you're not about to jump, I'd hate to break this up." 

They turned startled around to see a red and blue person sitting on the side of an antenna, looking down at them. 

"I should have known this..." Jonas said angry, he might have liked to meet Spiderman, but not now... this was real bad timing. 

As much as he considered Spiderman his favorite non X-Men character. 

"Buzz off bug!" Jonas said and frowned 

**Admiral**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Cara was fuming; she didn't know why, but every little thing was making her even more angry...she felt like she was losing control of herself. 

She watched as Gambit carried Leilee up to their room...then turned around and went back outside. She decided to take a walk in the woods; She really wanted to be alone, and maybe it would help her cool off. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

On the other side of the woods was a little clearing; it was on top of the cliff that the hidden Hanger was housed in, and the cliff overlooked the sea. 

Cara walked over to the edge of the cliff. She stood, watching as the waves danced in the distance, crashing against each other, glittering in the light of the full moon. The breeze whirled around her; playing with her hair, and brushing against her face. 

She felt her anger begin to recede, and closed her eyes... enjoying the peaceful moment... 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria had to run. True, it was the middle of the night, and there's a chance that some supervillian would be lurking in the woods, but she felt safe as she turned invisible and ran. 

The feeling of danger still lingered as she stopped and stared at the stars. The dark cloth of night that sparkled with it's own gems. As usual her thoughts turned to her family who's not even sharing the same sky with her. She walked on toward a cliff to see Cara standing there. Some part of danger grew stronger as Maria walked toward her silently. 

Cara seemed to relax now, but her face was still tense. Maria couldn't bear to disturb her but she couldn't leave her alone either. So, in the silence, she watched Cara stand there. 

**Maria Cline**

**_~Empire State Building~_**

Sammi looked at Spiderman and then back to Jonas. She faced Spiderman and said, "So are you the Real Peter Parker or are you one of the clones?" 

Spiderman was shocked."How did you know my name?" 

"Its a kinda magic." Sammi said smiling. She turned and said to Jonas,"I love this but We should probably get back before Logan kills you and Rogue kills me." 

**jubilee_79**

"You know this is weird." Jonas said and looked at Sammi. 

"X-men, Generation-x and Spiderman... who is next?" Jonas lifted both of them off the ground. "But you're right, I'm in too good a mood to fight Logan." 

Spiderman jumped down and grabbed Jonas by the arm. "I asked you a question, who did you know my name." 

"Oh, I know many things about you." Sammi said a wicked smile on her lips. 

"Don't worry Spidey, we won't tell anyone." Jonas said and landed on the ground again. 

"Sorry I snapped at you, and that... bug thing." Jonas held out a hand. "Jonas, I have always wanted to meet you, showed up at a bad moment that's all." 

Spiderman took Jonas hand, puzzled but it was a strong friendly handshake, and his spider sense was not sounding. 

"Nice to meet you, I don't get many visitors up here, but the occasional jumper, tired of life... figured you two might have been one of those." 

"Oh, the last thing we would do is jump of a cliff... or building." Sammi said hugging Jonas. 

"Well I'll leave you to what ever you was doing." Spiderman jumped up in the air. "If Logan and Rogue is who I think, say hello from me." Spiderman disappeared in to the darkness. 

They looked after him, then started to laugh... so that was the old web head... 

"Funny I thought he would be bigger." Jonas said as he once again lifted into the air feeling Sammi grab tight. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan eyed Rogue... Rogue eyed Logan... 

They were both still at the club... or rather outside. 

"I'm going to explain one or two things to that kid when they come back..." Logan said after ten minutes of watching the sky. 

"HIM! Ah'm telling ya she better be nice." Rogue responded without missing a beat. 

"Well he have one thing in mind, I'm telling ye he lay one finger on her, we will find out just how *invulnerable* he is." Logan turned to face Rogue 

"Ah think that he should be more worried about his feeling's than your claws." 

"Oh is that so, don't ye think I know what he wants... I can see it in his eyes." 

"They make a cute pair, don't ya think about getting in the way." Rogue faced Logan. 

Logan frowned, she was right... they fitted like a pair of gloves, and it was hard to accept when you wanna protect someone. 

**Admiral**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Xavier heard a knock at his door and knew who it would be. He had sensed her concern as the group had approached the house and had already gotten the details from her. He also knew where Sammi and Jonas were and had decide to talk to them when they returned. He was also concern about the emotional stability of both teams. The X-men were growing attached to this group while the others were now understanding what life here was like. 

(Hello, Charles. Are you here?) 

Xavier turned towards Amanda to see her staring at him dressed in her uniform. He felt a stab of disappointment that she had change out of her club dress. He realized he was getting in way too deep. 

"What can I do for you?" he asked 

"I'm worried about Cara and Maria. I think that girl who left with Sabertooth may have gotten to them." 

"What makes you so sure? I mean to say, what makes you think that it was that girl not the two new guests or just the constant fighting." 

"Well, this place lately seems to be a cross between a motel and a wrestling ring. Is it always this busy?" she asked smiling. 

"Only every other week." he replied laughing. 

Charles realized that he had never laughed as much as when he was with her. He enjoyed her company so much. He loved the way her dark blue eyes sparkled when she laughed. She understood him better then anyone else. She was also his match in power. He realized how empty his life would be when she left. 

"What's wrong?" Amanda asked. 

"Not using your powers?" 

"With the hostile emanating from Rogue and Logan, no way. In fact I was wondering if you would like to take a walk. I want to discuss what I sensed from that girl and what happen when I was hooked up to Cerebro." 

Charles thought about it for about two seconds. 

"I would love to." he replied. 

"Great let's go the back way through the woods, if your hoverchair will allow you. I can sense Cara and Maria out front and I think that they need some time to think." 

"I'll be fine. My chair allows me to go most places that a wheelchair cannot." 

Amanda smiled as she open the door. How he loved that smile. This walk may not have been a good idea, but as long as he was careful nothing would happen but an important discussion. He would not allow what happened before with Jonas to happen again, though Jonas did make a good chicken. 

Not that Jonas would be a problem till later when he had those two separated. There was no way they would stay in that room together. He may be 'old', but he had not forgot what happens between two people in love. As he watched Amanda leave, he was well aware of what it felt like to be in love. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi smelled Logan and Rogue as they got closer to the club. Then she heard them. She looked at Jonas and said, "They're worried, but this may involve some yelling. Are you ready?" 

"As I'll ever be." Jonas said hugging her tight as they started to land. 

Sammi kissed him, and said,"For luck. We're gonna need it." 

They landed, and Rogue and Logan came over to them. Logan looked as if he was going to kill them and Rogue looked as if she wanted details. 

Unfortunately for Jonas and Sammi, Logan spoke first. "Where have you been? Did you even think of your friends?" 

"What are you talking about? What happened?" Sammi asked getting worried after he mentioned their friends. 

"Leilee had a run in with Sabertooth. And Cara and Maria met a girl that was friends with him, Sugar." 

"WHAT?? Sabertooth was here?" Sammi asked as she started to feel like she let her friends down. 

"Don't worry, sugar. Everyone's fine. Leilee just got the fright of her life but nobody got hurt." Rogue said putting her arms around Jonas and Sammi. She could tell that they were both worried about their friends. 

"Yeah, they're fine this time, but what happens next time you two decide to go off?" Logan said still upset. 

"Us. What about you? You leave without a word to anyone anytime you want. You are the last person to be yelling at me for wanting a few moments in all this maddness to be with someone I really care about. So don't you ever lay a guilt trip on me for going on my own.,Got that Logan!!!!" Sammi yelled. 

She was worried about her friends, finally got some private time with Jonas out of dragon form, and now the man who ups and leaves on a regular basis is yelling at her about leaving. She was about to lose it, and not a good way. Jonas could tell she was getting really upset and started to hug her. She hugged him back. 

Logan was stunned. No one ever brought up about him leaving before, and now a girl he just met a few days ago and started caring for like a daughter had finally made him see that every time he ran off, he was only thinking of himself. 

"Sorry, darlin'. I was just worried, about ya. Can you forgive me?" Logan asked slowly patting her hand that was on Jonas's shoulder. 

"I just want to go home and make sure everyone is OK. Then have a nice hot cup of coffee and relax. I do forgive you, Logan. I'm just so tired all of a sudden." Sammi said looking at Logan. 

"Are you OK?" Jonas asked looking at her. 

"I'm fine. Its just everything has got me on edge. First us dealing with Sabertooth and now Leilee. I just need to regroup myself and then I'll be fine." Sammi said looking into Jonas's eyes. "I promise I'll be fine." She said after she saw all the worry that his eyes held. 

They all walked over to Logan's jeep, got in and headed home. 

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Sammi was sitting at the table with Jonas. She was looking at her coffee and holding his hand. All she wanted was to put everything out of her mind and then deal with it later when she had the strength. 

"Tell me something to get my mind off of all of this. Tell me a story."Sammi said. 

**jubilee_79**

"A story?" Jonas asked puzzled. 

"Yeah." Sammi answered back. 

/What kind of story?./ Jonas thought, thinking of something good to say. 

"I'm not to good at that, but what do you want to hear." 

"Anything, just something to get my mind of all of this." Sammi responded. 

Jonas sat thinking for a moment, his face turned sad... 

"What is it?" Sammi asked concerned. 

"I was thinking about how empty my life was without you... before I came here." Jonas held on to her hand. 

"I have no memory that compare to what I have here, right now... that don't lead to pain." A tear ran down his face. 

Sammi was about to say something but Jonas put a finger on her lips. 

"Please, listen... don't say anything." 

He swallowed and continued. 

"I don't have many friend's back home, none that I really care about." 

"I lived with that, I was a loner... I had lived all my life in hospital, you don't make many friends there." 

"And I learned the hard way that you must not get too attached to someone, you never know when they might leave... or die." 

"That don't stop when you get out of that place, you find a new reason to continue to be that way." 

"And it didn't matter that they sent a horde of psychiatrist your way to help you, you have been fooling doctors all your life." 

"I have lived like this all my life, I tried to get out from that rock once or twice, but there is always someone standing there to hit me on the head with a hammer." 

"Instead of hitting back I always crawled back under that stone." 

"Now I end up in a dimension far from my own, and I find you, I stick out my head from under that rock of mine to see what is going on and you pull me out..." 

"And the rest is history." Jonas paused. 

"I know that this might not be the story that I intended, but... you have helped me sort out so many things, helped me clear out some ghost I have been caring around." 

"Jonas..." Sammi tried 

"When I first saw you in medlab, there was something about you... it took me a moment to see It." he smiled. "I guess you distracted me." 

Jonas held her hand's tight. 

"I want you to know, that what ever happens, where ever we and up, here or back home, or in another dimension for all I care... I will always love you." He said smiling. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara finally felt better; her face was no longer tense, and Arac had taken a backseat...at least for the moment. But Cara was having the strangest feeling that she was being watched. 

She turned around, but didn't see anyone there; she listened very closely, and heard a twig snap... 

/Let's see... who do I know that can get around without being seen... Of course! It must be Maria!!!/ Cara thought with a touch of surprise. 

"Maria? Is that you? If it is, please show yourself..." Cara spoke to the air. 

Maria hesitated for a moment, then appeared. "Are you alright?" she asked Cara. 

Cara seemed more like her normal self to Maria; the sparkle had returned to her eyes, and the sense of danger surrounding her had lessened... but Maria still worried about her... something was not right. 

"I'm feeling better Maria... I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier... I don't know what's gotten into me." Cara said, smiling apologetically. 

Cara looked back at the sea, then turned back to Maria. 

"You know what I could go for right now?" Cara said with a grin, "A triple chocolate peanut butter shake... they're my speciality. Care to join me?" 

**Rainfall**

**_~Baddie's Lair~_**

Monitors beeping, soft shallow breathing and quiet sobs were all that could be heard in the room. Ryan sat next to Victor's bed holding his hand trying to be comforting. It was hard for her she had never really had to do that for someone. Sinister did all that he could do for him and now it was a matter of his healing factor kicking in. 

"They seemed so nice." Ryan spoke softly to herself in the room. 

She was trying to sort things out in her head. She had finally sobered up and had a horrible hang over which didn't help the thinking process. Mystique had told her who those people were. Now she was confused. They were nice to her and she was happy... for a little while. She looked down to Victor resting in the bed. If he died then they would too. 

"I'm so sorry", she whispered over and over again. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"You know that is the first time I think that anyone has cried over Victor Creed." Mystique said looking at Sinister who was also watching the girl in the room. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

"I think she is finally waking up." Athena heard the voices before she saw the faces attached to them. 

/What happened,/ she thought to herself. She opened her eyes to the same blue face that had caused her to faint in the first place. 

That's when it came back to her. She had fallen out of a tree only to be greeted by what looked like Bobby Drake and Dr. Hank McCoy. Only it couldn't be them, they were comic book characters. "Someone is playing a really bad joke on me!" 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Xavier and Amanda were in the midst of their walk when they sensed Jonas and Sammi return. Xavier had wanted to turn back, but Amanda had convinced him not to. She had distracted him by talking about Sinister's involvement and what she had picked up from Ryan. She was surprised how a feeling girl could become so bitter, but love and rejection could change a person. Xavier had agreed that they would call a meeting when everyone had calm down to discuss these developments. 

Amanda was surprised at how good she felt. She was no longer upset or angry. She smiled as she looked at the reason why. Amanda knew what Jonas and Sammi were feeling. She was feeling it too, only she had pick an unlikely candidate for those emotions. Charles Xavier. He was so stoic and kinda all knowing. The X-men all looked up and admired him. Even Logan and Gambit, but they did their best to hide it. She knew he was the most unlikely person for her to love, but love him she did. 

There in lies the problem, should she tell him. She had almost spilled it awhile ago. If Jonas hadn't interrupted she would had kissed him. She had been disappointed he hadn't come to the club, but that scene wasn't him. It was another reminder of their differences. Jonas and Sammi were different, but managed to connect. Maybe she should ask them for advice. 

(Amanda?) 

(Yes, Charles?) 

(There is something I have to tell you, but I would prefer to have a normal conversation.) 

"What is it, Xavier?" she asked 

"I have to tell you this." 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

In the kitchen, the two girls were creating a massive dessert. Maria had gotten out the ingredients as Cara made her triple chocolate peanut butter shakes. 

Maria smiled as she also take out some cornbread and hotdogs to make her special Cornbread dogs to go with the shakes. "Cara, I know that you're not yourself. I mean being two people must've been a real difficulty." 

"What do you mean?" Cara asked as her eyes grew cold. 

"I mean, I read X-Factor and I read about all the problems that Jamie had with his personality. I thought that, well... something happened to you and I don't know. Maybe... we should get someone to look in your mind for anything wrong." 

**Maria Cline**

Cara bit her lower lip and looked away from Maria... she was finally in a good mood, and all of this talk about her 'problem' was making her feel uneasy. 

She turned back to Maria. 

"There really isn't anything wrong with me...I just had an off day." she hedged, "There isn't any reason to--" she was cut short by the look on Maria's face. 

Maria wasn't buying it...she was really worried about Cara. 

Cara's face took on a beaten, tired look. 

"Alright... if you feel it is necessary. Just please don't tell anyone... let me be the one to tell someone... I'll talk with Jean... but I would like to wait til tomorrow. I'm a little too tired tonight." Her eyes were pleading with Maria. 

Maria looked at Cara...reluctantly, and against her better judgement, she agreed to let it wait until the following day. 

Cara smiled a little, and said, "The shakes are done...Are your special Cornbread dogs ready?" 

Maria nodded, she still had that dubious look on her face...but she handed one of the plates of food to Cara. Cara put the shakes on the table, and the two girls sat down, and ate the food in relative silence. No more was said about Cara's problem that night... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Xavier stopped speaking for a moment, and looked off into the distance...he knew what he wanted to say, but not quite how to say it. He cared deeply for this girl...this Woman; he didn't want to say anything which would chase her away. 

As he was looking around the garden, attempting to gather his words, he spied a rosebush. On the rosebush was a single perfect red rosebud, not yet bloomed. Xavier smiled. He moved over to the rosebush, and plucked the rosebud; then turned back to Amanda and held out his hand. 

Amanda walked over to Xavier, puzzled by his actions. 

When she reached him, he looked up at her and smiled, then gave her the rose. 

"This is a representation of our...friendship." he said, "May it be as perfect as this rose, with all of the potential for growth that it holds." 

**Rainfall**


	11. Reality Bites-Part 11

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 11

**

**_==JONAS==_**

It was a beautiful night, stars in sky, the wind blowing soft against the treetops... 

Scott had talked with them about the room thing, but it was diverted by the fact that they were all to tired, so the discussion was dropped for the night. 

Sammi was showering... Jonas on the other hand was not even in the room. 

200 meters over the mansion, hovering in mid air, calm wind plowing past him, focused and relaxed... not a stray thought in his head, one with all the world. 

It was incredible how easy this was... flying, if he didn't know better he could think that everyone could fly this way if they only knew how. 

Something bothered him... 

He had not been there for the team, they were ok... but as Logan said what about next time. 

"Mind if ah *drop* in on ya." the voice scared him, last time he was surprised he almost died... never again. 

He swung around ready to deliver a blow that would have knocked down a building at whoever was behind him... no one? 

Someone grabbed him from behind. "Easy sugar, didn't mean to scare you." 

Jonas calmed down... Rogue. 

"Let me go... please." Jonas whispered, not in the mood to talk right now. 

Rogue let go, carefully. 

"Let me guess, ya are angry at yourself for not being there today, right?" Rogue said and was hovering beside him. 

"Yeah, I mean... Leilee could have been killed, that guy is nuts, I could not live with myself if..." 

"Ya know, Logan was ready to explode when he realized that ya two skipped out." Rogue said grinning and trying to get his mind off his troubles. 

Jonas smiled... 

"Sooooo?" Rogue tried smiling wide. 

"So what?" Jonas tried to act innocent. 

"Ah wanna know, where did ya two end up?" She pushed him to the side. 

"Empire State Building." Jonas said and grinned. "I know, I know... it's not the most romantic place on the planet... but it was private..." he sighed. 

"Or so I thought." Jonas frowned. 

"What do ya mean?" Rogue said and looked at him puzzled. 

"Well Spidey decided to drop in on us... I guess I should get back, I didn't tell Sammi I was getting out, I don't wanna make her worried." 

"See you tomorrow, ok?" 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi came out of the bathroom. She looked around and didn't see Jonas. She got worried. 

/Did I scare him because of how depressed I got when I heard about the others?/ She thought. 

She heard a noise outside the window, she turned and said,"Jonas?" 

"Yeah, It's me." Jonas said as he came in the window. 

"What were you doing out there?" She asked as he sat down on his bed. She sat across from him on hers. 

"Thinking." 

"Oh. I wanted to apologize." She said looking into her hands on her lap. 

"Apologize? About what?" He asked, taking her hands in his. 

"About how depressed I got when I heard about the others." She said still looking down. 

"You don't have to." He started to say and stopped as she put a finger to his lips. 

She looked up and said," I need to explain." 

"You see, ever since my parents died. I haven't had a family, so my friends became my family. And when Jamar was taken away, I promised that I would always be there for any of my friends. Well, I got a little depressed when I heard what happened tonight. I felt as if I let them down. I'm not saying that I didn't love being with you. I loved every minute. Even when Spiderman showed up." 

"It's just the guilt of breaking that promise, that got to me. But when we were talking, I was thinking and I realized that I can't always be there and I have to trust that they can protect themselves. I can't keep placing all of that on myself. I'd go nuts." 

Jonas was about to say something, but she stopped him. 

"I'm not finished." 

"This is the first time that I ever let myself fall in love with someone. And I've realized how much of my life I've been missing, being the constant protector. I can't live like that anymore. I just wanted you to know that, no matter what, I will always love you, too. And if we ever get home I'm going to find away to get to Sweden to be with you." Her eyes were still looking down. She brought them up to his. And He got up and helped her up and hugged her tight. 

After a few moments she said," I hope you have the room because I have to bring Jamar with me." 

"As long as I have you, I don't care who else is there." Jonas said pulling out of the hug. Looking into her eyes he said,"We've got a problem." 

"I know. I don't want to be away from you, but how are we going to get around the professor?" She said hugging him again. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria and Cara finished their snack, and did the dishes... said goodnight, and Maria went up to her room. Cara went wandering about the mansion. 

She went past the rec-room, and noticed Beast sitting on the couch, reading from a book of his favorite poetry. Cara stopped in the doorway. 

Hank looked up, and smiled when he saw Cara. She smiled back, but Hank noticed that her face was a little pale. Hank's face took on a concerned look; he closed the book, put it down and patted the couch cushion next to him. Cara walked over and sat down. 

"Are you alright?" Hank asked the girl, looking down at her. 

Cara closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead with one hand; then looked up at Hank. She gave a sort of half-smile, then said, "Yeah, I'm okay..." just then, her eyes suddenly filled with tears, and two spilled out, rolling down her cheeks before she could stop them. 

Hank brushed the tears from her cheeks, and pulled her into a hug. 

"I am here, if you need to talk." he said to the distraught girl, stroking her hair away from her face. 

Cara buried her head in his shoulder, crying long and hard. How could she tell him what was wrong? How could she explain all of the pain, fear, frustration, anger and despair that she was feeling? She couldn't begin to put her emotions into words. 

Everything that she knew was gone...her whole world was falling apart...she was losing control of herself, her emotions, her mind; and she felt powerless to stop it. How could she explain? 

Gradually, Cara's sobs ceased, and her body stopped shaking. Cara pulled a little away from Beast. 

"I'm sorry, Hank!" she said, embarrassed, "I don't usually cry that much...I guess I'm just a little overtired..." 

Beast was concerned; he brushed her cheek tenderly with the back of his hand... 

"Is there anything I can do?" he asked the girl. 

Cara thought for a moment...then saw his book of poetry. 

"Could you read some poetry to me?" she asked, the hint of a smile on her face. 

Beast nodded, and picked up the book; Cara nestled against Beast and settled her head on his chest, her ear resting just over his heart. 

Beast opened the book and began to read, while he stroked Cara's hair... 

"The Human Touch-by Spencer Michael Free...  
'Tis the human touch in this world that counts,  
The touch of your hand and mine,  
Which means far more to the fainting heart  
Than shelter and bread and wine;  
For shelter is gone when the night is o'er,  
And bread lasts only a day,  
But the touch of the hand and the sound of the voice  
Sing on in the soul Alway." 

Beast stopped reading and looked down at the girl; she had fallen asleep. Beast smiled and put the book down. 

Gently, he picked Cara up and carried her up to her room. Leilee was asleep, and Beast did his best not to wake either of the sleeping girls. He placed Cara gently on her bed, and pulled the covers over her; he stroked her hair, then he turned around and went out of the room. 

/I'll have to talk with Jean and the Professor about Cara in the morning./ Beast thought, as he went back to the rec-room. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas rolled in bed, he had tossed and turned for over an hour, Sammi was tight asleep, he listened to her breathe... but he was not sleepy. 

He rolled out of the bed, but his feet never touched the floor, he hovered above it, not to awaken Sammi, he picked up his uniform that was placed on a stool. 

Carefully and silently he strapped the uniform onto his body, when ready he hovered over to the door and grabbed the handle. 

"Don't think I didn't hear you." Sammi said still half asleep. "Don't go wandering around all night, you be sure to get some sleep ok." she said and fell asleep again. 

Jonas smiled and walked out the door. 

The mansion was a lot bigger then he ever thought. 

Crossing a corner flying a little too fast for his own good, Hank came in to view... he didn't have time to turn out of the way. 

~THUD~ Both of them were thrown to the ground but Hank landed on his feet while Jonas landed face down and slid into the wall. 

"I see that you new people seem to have problem sleeping." Hank helped Jonas to his feet. 

"Glad I don't get hurt too easy, I screw up more often then I get it right, thanks." Jonas said as he let go of Hank's hand when finally standing up. 

"My pleasure." Hank said and slapped Jonas on the back grinning wide. 

"So, why aren't you asleep?" he asked Hank as he started walking for an unknown destination. 

"I have been trying to figure out about why you keep ending up here, and I promised I would be so kind as to greet the newly arrival." Hank said and frowned. 

"New?" Jonas asked interested. 

"Yes, it would seem that a young girl has dropped in on Generation-X, and they are coming over early this morning." 

"Not that I mind but... why only girls, I mean, I and Jamar look's to be the only male *Drop ins* you have had." Jonas crossed his arms over his chest. 

Hank shrugged. "It would seem strange, but I have a hard time figuring this thing out at all, it is totally unpredictable." 

"Well if it would help, why don't you throw your idees at me, I will probably not understand one second of it but, hey it worked for Holmes and Watson." 

Hank smile and patted Jonas on the back. "You know, you didn't turn out to be half the trouble I thought you would be." 

**_~*~*~5 Hours Later~*~*~_**

"I'm telling you my dear friend, you will not be able to defeat my armies on that front, you have to retreat." 

Hank moved some small figures over a world map. They had been playing a strategy game for the last 4 hour, and both were confident of victory. 

"You were just as sure of that when I took Canada from you." Jonas responded and rolled the dice. 

Hank muttered. As he saw the number, removing the number of small soldiers and cannons that Jonas had destroyed. 

"Not so sure any more?" Jonas teased and moved some troops over the map. 

"You have not beaten me yet." Hank muttered seeing Jonas shatter his plans for world domination for the next 20 moves. 

Hank rolled the dice, and smiled. "Imminent defeat can turn quick..." Hank said, as it was Jonas turn to mutter. 

"It looks like your attack will take longer then expected." Hank leaned in close. "You can still retreat." 

Jonas took a deep breath, slammed his chest with a closed fist... "NEVER RETREAT, NEVER SURRENDER!" 

Hank looked at him, and they both laughed. 

"This could go on forever, we are a match in tactical thinking obviously, it's a shame that you don't play chess." Hank said and lifted one eyebrow. 

"Do that mean you are surrendering." Jonas said and rolled the dice inside his hand. 

Hank looked at him. "Never... I will not quit this until I have you scowled away from this map." 

"That is the spirit." Jonas threw the dice. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb woke up with a throbbing headache. /what was I on last night?/ she thought to herself with a grin. /Must have been the paint fumes from my tagging last night./ she thought happily as she remembered where she was before she came here. 

Angelo was sitting in a chair watching Teb's back, he stayed all night in case she woke up and needed help controlling her powers. 

"Yo Chica, have a nice rest?" 

He watched as Teb jumped. she obviously thought she was dreaming, from what Jubes said on the phone all these newcomers thought they were dreaming. She turned to look at him under her ruffled punk red hair that stuck out like a sore thumb. 

Teb stared at Angelo, then started to relax a bit as she came to terms that she was still in a comic book universe. /So I'm a mutant with extra skin and I'm miles from home...no big deal./ Teb told herself . 

Angelo got up and smiled. 

/What a babe./ thought Teb dreamily. 

He motioned her to follow him and she did. Right to Paige's and Jube's room. 

"What are we doing here?" 

"To see what clothes Jube's got that you can wear." 

"No no no, there's no way I'm wearing short shorts and a tube top!" she protested, a girly girl she was not. 

"Well, maybe Paige.." 

"NO!" 

"Well you can't wear that its dirty and you slept in it." 

He had a point. She hated to wear the same thing she slept in the next day. 

/Think think think... I'm not going to be seen in a pink tank top and flares no no no...I KNOW!/ 

"UM, Angelo.. do you mind if I borrow some of your clothes?" 

"Mine!? Si I suppose." 

"Great." 

"I'll go get you sometin' to wear. you take a shower and get ready... we gotta be ready to leave for the mansion in a little while." 

**Teb**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

Creed woke up with a tremendous headache. His brain felt like someone had run over it with a truck. He tried to pull his hands up to his head but found one was trapped by something. He finally opened his eyes to see Ryan's small body lying next to his. 

He sniffed a little and could tell she had been crying. She didn't even change out of the clothes she wore to the club last night. He suddenly felt a stab of pain in his heart; she had stayed by his side crying over him all night. Somehow that scared him but he would deal with that another day.  


**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Someone was stroking her cheek and it felt nice. Slow and tender movements along the curve of her face, she didn't want it to stop. She kept her eyes closed and tried to hide the smile that crept along her face, she could pretend to be asleep just a little longer. 

"So I saw yaw dancing with the Cajun last night. You into those kind of guys?" 

She opened her eyes and looked up to Creed. "No, I was just doing a favor for someone." 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Emma rang the door bell. Teb stood behind her with Angelo waiting and she was actually excited. 

/Maybe being here won't be so bad at all./ she thought as she looked up at the giant building. 

Hank opened the door and let the group in. 

"Hello, Dr. McCoy." Emma said offering her hand. 

"Hello, Ms. Frost." he said as he shook it, "And you," he said staring at Teb "must be our newcomer." 

"Yes, I'm Teb....uhh, hi." 

"Ahhh Teb, what a name, and this," he motioned to Jonas "is Jonas. He was brought here like you." 

"Hi." 

"Hello, and I know what you're thinking, this isn't a dream." 

"Damn." 

Angelo chuckled at her, which only got him a glare in return. 

Hank and Jonas exchanged a knowing glance. 

"Well.." started Hank "Jonas, why don't you and Angelo show Teb around and introduce her to the others while I take Emma to see Xavier?" 

"Alright." said Jonas, "Hello Teb, I like your hair." 

"Thanks. So what's your power?" 

The two started off having a nice conversation with Angelo trailing behind. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"I think it would be best if Angelo stayed here and helped Teb use her power." said Emma. 

"Oh I think that's alright," Charles said, "and it may solve another problem I have about rooming arrangements with some of our other visitors. Hopefully they will agree to move." 

**Teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria slowly got out of her bed. "I gotta stop it with the late night snacks." Maria muttered to herself as she went downstairs to see Angelo, Jonas, and a girl that looked odd. She smiled and went up to them. "Hi." 

Jonas nodded toward his fellow lost writer. "Hey, Maria. This is Teb." 

"Teb?" Maria repeated, "That's an interesting name." 

"Hello, Maria." Angelo said, "How're you doing with that scream powers?" 

"Just fine." 

"Scream powers?" Teb repeated. "Is that your powers?" 

"That and invisibility." Maria added as she turned transparent and reappeared. 

"Hello," another voice said. Jonas and Maria looked up to see Scott standing there. "You must be the one of the newer arrivals." 

"CYCLOPS?!" Teb exclaimed as she turned pale. Angelo looked at her confused as Scott sighed at the somewhat constant look of bewilderment of the arrivals. 

"Yes?" 

"I thought that he's-" 

"NO!!!" Maria and Jonas yelled out as they ran up to her. 

**Maria Cline**

"What! What did I say!!!" a shocked Teb exclaimed as Jonas and Maria dragged her down the hall, and into another room; out of the hearing range of Cyclops and Angelo. 

"Look, we don't know exactly what is going on," said Maria, "but you can't go around blurting out certain things." 

"She's right..." said Jonas. "It seems that some things haven't happened yet; anything you say could have serious repercussions on their world...Please don't say anything about Cyclops or Wolverine." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Angelo and Cyclops looked in the direction that the three had taken...both of their mouths were wide open. 

/Sooner or later...I'm going to get some answers out of these kids./ Cyclops promised himself. He turned and went outside. 

Angelo watched Scott go, then he turned and went in search of the three travelers. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

In the kitchen, Gambit was preparing a special surprise for a special lady...he whistled and smiled as he worked. When everything was ready, he headed upstairs. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee was sitting on her bed, tying her shoes; Cara was in the bathroom, drying her hair. There was a knock on the door. 

Leilee got up to answer it. It was Gambit! 

"Morning Chere..." said the Cajun, as he smiled. "How do you feel about taking an early morning ride with Gambit?" 

"On your motorcycle?" asked the surprised Leilee. 

Gambit nodded... 

"I'd love to!" said Leilee; then she frowned. "But, what about Cara?" she asked. 

Cara popped her head through the bathroom doorway. She grinned... 

"I already knew about the motorcycle ride...I helped Gambit to plan everything." she said. 

"Helped him plan what?" asked Leilee. 

"You'll see soon enough," said Cara, as she grinned. "Now you two run along...and have a good time. I've got some things to do around here. Catch ya on the flip side!" she said, as she ducked back into the bathroom. 

Gambit took Leilee by the hand, and led her downstairs; they stopped by the kitchen, where Gambit picked up...a Picnic Basket!!! 

Gambit led Leilee outside, where he had his motorcycle waiting. He strapped the picnic basket to the very back of the bike, got on, kicked off the kick stand and started the motor. He held his hand out to Leilee. 

Leilee swung herself behind Gambit, and wrapped her arms around his waist...and they rode away.... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara watched as Gambit and Leilee rode off...she hoped that they would have a good time. She wasn't looking forward to what she had to do though. She had promised Maria that she would get some help. Cara turned from the window, and went in search of Jean... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda had spent a rather sleepless night...she was overcome with mixed emotions about what had happened the night before. After Xavier had given her the rose, Amanda had said thank you to him, but she couldn't find the words to say anything else... she had stood there in silence. 

Charles had been disappointed...he was afraid that he had driven her away, or worse still, he was afraid that he had been wrong about her feelings for him. They said goodnight to each other, and had parted ways...Charles going to his room, Amanda going to hers. 

Amanda looked now at the rose which stood on her dresser...it had begun to bloom. Amanda buried her face in her hands and began to cry. Had she lost all chances with Charles? 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sometime later, Amanda emerged from her room. She felt the need to talk to someone, but Maria was nowhere to be found... Jonas said that Cable had taken her with him somewhere. 

Sammi and Jonas were showing the newer arrivals around the mansion. Leilee had gone somewhere with Gambit. And Cara was having some sort of session with Jean. Cara didn't want Amanda there for some reason. 

Amanda wandered outside, sat down on the porch and sighed. For some reason, she was feeling a little left out of things. 

Jubilee came bounding up to her, saying, "I heard you got the day off... wanna go with me, Storm and Rogue? We're going horseback riding... Come on, it'll be fun!" 

Jubilee grinned and grabbed Amanda by the arm, and dragged her to the garage to meet the others. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Gambit and Leilee had ridden on Gambit's motorcycle for quite a while, before Gambit found the perfect spot...a small, grassy clearing by the side of a river. Wild flowers decorated the clearing, and there was a lone shady tree just standing by the riverbank. 

Gambit parked the motorcycle in the small parking lot which was to one side of this little spot; he hopped off of the motorcycle, grabbed the picnic basket with one hand, and took Leilee's hand with the other. They were both laughing as they ran over to the tree. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jamie Madrox walked up the steps of the mansion, and rang the doorbell. Cyclops had called him the day before, and asked him to come help one of their new recruits, who had powers similar to Jamie's. 

/This should be interesting.../ he thought to himself. 

The door was opened by Beast, who ushered Jamie inside. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara walked out of the medlab; her face was pale and in her eyes was a tired, beaten look. She was exhausted. Jean had asked the Professor for help with the mind probe; neither of them found a thing. 

If there was something wrong with Cara, it was hidden too deep within her psyche for it to be found... at least, not without doing some irreparable damage. Of course, the reason nothing was found, could also have been because the Professor had been preoccupied... 

The Professor had simply attributed Cara's mood swings to stress, and advised her to take some meditation instruction from Wolverine. 

^Yeah, like that's really going to help get rid of me.^ announced Arac... its plan was working well. 

Arac had hidden itself deep within Cara's mind...only resurfacing after the mind-probe was finished. 

^That old has-been Xavier thinks he knows everything...well, he will soon be proven wrong. The moment for my plan to go into effect will soon be at hand... until then, I will sleep.^ with that said, Arac's voice faded, and its presence seemed to disappear. 

Cara felt more like herself...all of her negative emotions seemed to fade, and she was actually in a good mood. She began to whistle as she walked down the hall. 

As Cara rounded the corner, she found herself face-to-face with Beast, and a man she had never met before. He looked familiar though. 

He had blue eyes and brown hair, and was almost 6 feet tall. 

/Kinda cute.../ was Cara's first thought. 

"Cara, this is Jamie Madrox; your new instructor. Jamie, this is Cara; the new student that Cyclops was telling you about." said Beast. 

/Great...I just called my new instructor 'cute'...boy, I'm glad he's not a telepath. I'd never live that down!/ Cara thought, as she shook hands with Jamie. 

Cara grinned as she suddenly thought of something, "You know, when I get this duplicating thing down, we could form our own softball teams... just the me's against the you's. How 'bout it?" 

Jamie raised an eyebrow. "You're challenging me to a game?" he said, somewhat amused. 

All three of them began to walk down the hall, in the direction of the kitchen. 

"Yep!" said Cara. "On the day I graduate from your training, I challenge you to a battle of bats!" 

/This is definitely going to be interesting.../ thought Jamie to himself. He smiled at the girl. "You're on...but I get to be the me's!" 

"No way...I called dibs on the me's. You have to be the you's." said Cara as she grinned. 

"Nuh uh...you didn't say the word dibs...so I get to be the me's, and you have to be the you's." 

"No Way!" 

"Way!" 

"No Way!" 

"Way!" 

"No Way!" 

"Way!" 

Beast stopped walking and watched as the other two entered the kitchen; still arguing about their 'softball team' names. Hank covered his eyes with one hand; He was beginning to get a dreadful headache. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Normally, Maria would have enjoyed spending time with Cable... but her talk with Cara the night before had her kind of preoccupied. She turned to Cable. 

Maria said, "Look... I gotta go and find Cara. I have this feeling that something isn't all right with her. Woman's intuition." 

She turned invisible and walked off. A deep pain of guilt began to seep into her soul. A part of her is starting to regret telling Scott about Alex. But she couldn't ignore the fact that she did something. More and more of her felt that this universe wasn't identical to the comics. 

"My kingdom for a bottle of aspirin." Hank muttered as he walked by her to the cabinet. 

Maria turned visible again and asked, "Headache?" 

The X-Man jumped and turned to see her. "Please, don't do that. I may be accustomed to time travelers and dimensional hoppers but people sneaking up on me like that tends to weaken my nerves." 

"Sorry about that." Maria said as her face turned red. 

"No need to apologize. It's just that Jamie's here to aid Cara in her multiple powers. They're arguing over their softball team names when Cara learns to duplicate herself more." 

"Is there anything wrong with Cara? I mean, I'm really worried about her." 

"Well, she's severely stressed out. Jean and the Professor did check her and she's mentally sound." 

"Oh good." Maria said in relief. Still, a voice in the back of her mind whispered, **They could be wrong.** 

"May I make an inquiry?" 

"Yes?" 

"Why had every arrival looked absolutely shocked the first time any of you saw our fearless leader?" 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Gambit laid everything from the picnic basket on the ground under the tree. 

Leilee was watching him and thought /He brought enough food for Wolverine and Beast./ This thought made her giggle. 

Gambit looked up and asked,"What's so funny, chere?" 

"I was just thinking that you brought enough food to feed Wolverine and Beast." Leilee said. 

Gambit chuckled,"Well, dey are not here. Tis only you and me. Why don't you sit down. I promise I won't bite." 

Leilee smiled and said as she sat down,"I promise I won't bite either. Unless you want me to." 

Gambit laughed again, "You know, Chere, We have been doing this a lot." 

"What?" Leilee asked. 

"Laughing. Ever since your group came de X-Men have all been laughing or smiling. Even old Wolverine. I can't figure it out, but I know that when you leave we'll all be very sad, especially me." Gambit said taking her hand. "I'll miss you a lot." 

"We'll all miss you guys alot too." Leilee said looking into the eyes that had been referred to as demon eyes but all she could see was sadness. 

"Non, I meant I"LL miss you." Gambit said reaching over and sliding the back of his hand down her cheek. 

"I'll miss you a lot, too, Remy." 

"I like the way it sounds when you say that. Say it again." Gambit said looking into her eyes. 

"What?" Leilee asked as they were drawing closer. 

"My name?" Gambit said inching closer. 

"Remy." Leilee said as Gambit crossed what was left of the gap and kissed her. She kissed him back. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi was trying to find Maria she wanted to talk to her about Cara. Then she heard Hank's question she hurried up. She came around the corner to see Hank and Maria. Maria looked scared. 

"Hi, Hank. Looking for these?" Sammi asked as she produced a bottle of aspirin. 

"Oh, my stars and garters. You read my mind." Hank said taking the aspirin. 

"No, I just figured that you would need them, with all of us dropping in. About that, I'm sorry I landed on you." Sammi said watching Hank taking the pills. 

"No apologies needed. The aspirin made it all right. Now that there are two of you may I ask, Why is it you all acted really strange to see our fearless leader when you first showed up?" 

Sammi looked at Maria. And said,"Hank, I'm sorry but I need Maria for some help with Teb, maybe we can talk about this later, Ok?" Sammi said taking Maria's arm and walking down the hall before he could answer. 

"Thanks." Maria said. 

"No prob. I was looking for you I wanted to talk to you about Cara and ask you something." Sammi said as they rounded the corner to her and Jonas's room. She opened the door and walked in motioning for Maria to follow. 

"What about Cara?" Maria asked. /Maybe I'm not the only one who noticed./ She thought. 

"No you're not." Sammi said. 

"I'm not what?" 

"You're not the only one who noticed a change in Cara. Wait, you thought that didn't you? I really got to learn how to use this." Sammi said lightly tapping her head. 

"Hank said that Jean and the Professor did a scan and they found nothing wrong, but I still have a feeling that something is wrong." 

"I know. But I can't figure out what." Sammi said looking puzzled. 

"You said you wanted to ask me something." Maria said changing the subject. 

"Yeah, can you tell me What exactly did happen with Logan and Scott?" Sammi said getting serious. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Baddies Lair~_**

Creed was feeling a lot better. His healing factor kicked in and had taken care of the headache he had earlier. The morning workout with Ryan was a good one with him teaching her a few new moves. She caught on quickly and almost took him down. 

He was proud of her, and it showed. Right now she was shopping with Mystique again. He wanted to go with them but didn't because he didn't want to seem weak. Imagine, big and bad Sabertooth wanting to spend time with a girl, it would ruin his image. 

**Le Fae**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

After Sammi and Jonas finished giving the basic tour of the mansion, Athena decided she needed some fresh air. She sat on a chaise lounge near the swimming pool. She just needed to collect her thoughts. 

/Here I am in a world where my favorite comic book characters are real. Cool. The first thing I do when I meet Hank McCoy and Bobby Drake is faint. Not cool. All of the new people here seem to have amazing new powers. Cool. I don't seem to have any powers. Not cool. Well, now is probably not the time for self pity. Everyone here seems so preoccupied. I feel as though I'm intruding. They all act like they have known each other for years. I usually crave solitude, but this is one time where I would give anything for some company./ 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan had ditched Mystique at the mall a few hours ago. She had told her that she wanted a smoke and so when she went outside she lit up and began walking. She just kept walking until she found herself in front of a familiar house. 

Looking through her bag she found a pen and paper and began to write a note. She turned herself into a stray cat and walked onto the property. Hesitating only for a moment to make sure no alarms went off she ran towards the house. 

As she came closer to the house she turned back into human form. Outside sitting by the pool was a girl who seemed to be lost in thought. 

"Ahem" 

"Oh, excuse me, I'm sorry I didn't notice you walk up. Do you live here too?" The girl asked Ryan with a puzzled look on her face. She didn't seem familiar, not a comic book hero then. Maybe she was like her and came from her world. 

"No, I don't. I have brought a message for the X-men. Could you please give it to them?" 

**Le Fae**

"Sure, anyone in particular you want to give it to?" Athena, did not recognize the girl. No alarms went off when she came up, so she must belong here somewhere. 

/Funny, I could have sworn there was a cat here just a minute ago. I never would have thought Xavier to be the type who had pets,/ she thought. 

To the other girl she said, "I guess you must be in a hurry, since you don't want to give the message in person. If you'll just tell me who you would like it to go to, I'll be happy to play delivery person." 

**snowbaby**

"I'm not in a hurry… I just don't want to get hurt. Any of the X-men will do, but if you need a specific person I guess Maria or Cara will do fine." 

Ryan eyed the girl; she wasn't at the club last night. They must have not told her what happened either. She seemed a little sad but then again everyone who was here was a little sad. The only bond Ryan could tell with the people she had met was that they seemed sad. 

"You don't want to get hurt??" The other girl broke her thoughts. 

**Le Fae**

"I'll just go find Maria or Cara." Athena tried to smile, but it was difficult as she suddenly felt a little nervous. 

She felt as if she had done something wrong, though she couldn't think of what. She just wanted to get away. 

"Maybe I'll see you later, bye." Was all she could think to say as she ran back to the mansion. 

She entered through the kitchen, and found Hank opening a bottle of water. As she came all the way into the kitchen she noticed he swallowed a little pill. That's when she saw the bottle of aspirin on the counter. 

"I hope I didn't cause you to have a headache. It was so very rude of me to have fainted dead away. I've been just mortified with embarrassment ever since it happened. I just wasn't expecting any of this." She said as she punctuated her statement by gesturing around the room. "Not to change the subject, but have you seem Cara or Maria? Someone was just here and asked me to deliver a message to one of them. She seemed a little odd. She said she couldn't deliver the message in person, because she didn't want to get hurt." 

Athena realized she had been rambling so quickly, she hadn't given the poor man a chance to speak. "Sorry," she drawled in her southern accent. "Sometimes I get carried away." Oh how she hated her accent, and to make matters worse, she just realized she was blushing! 

/How humiliating. Now he will think I'm an idiot. Who in their right mind still faints and blushes in this century?/ 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara was in the Danger Room, facing off against Multiple Man. He was teaching her hand to hand combat skills. 

Cara punched her fist into the palm of one hand; a duplicate Cara formed. Both Caras punched their fists into the palms of their other hands; there were now four Caras. 

"That's as far as I can split at the moment..." she told Jamie. 

It didn't hurt Cara so bad anymore when she split now...she was getting used to the feeling. And, though her duplicates were capable of individual thought, she was still connected with them all; both thought and emotion. 

/But I couldn't sense what my first duplicate was feeling or thinking...that doesn't make sense!/ she thought to herself. 

She wasn't fully aware of Arac's existance...only her subconscious mind was; the part of Cara that fought Arac for control. For now, all was silent in Cara's mind... Arac was asleep. 

Cara watched as Multiple Man split into 2, then 4, then 8, and finally 16 different people! 

"EEP!" yelped all four Caras...as four of the dupes lunged for them. 

/Great! And I thought training with Gambit was hard!/ thought Cara, as she and the other Caras fought against the four Jamie's. 

**Rainfall**


	12. Reality Bites-Part 12

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 12

**

/I'm not that scary am I?/ Ryan thought she watched the girl retreat into the house. 

She shrugged her shoulders and walked back the way she had come. She realized that she had not changed back into a cat form but if she saw or heard alarms she would just change into a mouse or something and run off. She realized that the X-men would probably not hurt her if she just came to leave a message but she was still weary. If she were in charge any bad guy that came on the grounds would get squashed. 

She thought about that for a moment. She was the bad person in the story now. " How life changes, she thought to herself. She remembered back to when she was little and how everyone said what a good little girl she was. In fact she was a good girl through most of her high school career. She studied and got pretty good grades. Of course she partied on the weekend but not like her friends did. They would leave Friday and not come back until Sunday night. 

"Yup things change so much in such short times." 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Breathe," Hank said, looking at a breathless Athena in astonishment. "Now, did you say someone asked you to deliver a message?" 

Athena nodded, afraid to speak, she didn't want to make a complete fool of herself again. 

"Who gave you the message?" Hank asked, smiling kindly. 

"I don't know, I mean I didn't recognize her. She was a stranger to me. Maybe I should have stayed longer, but I just had this funny feeling. A sort of strange tingling sensation, it felt like something was just wrong. I don't know where to find Cara or Maria, and the girl did say to give it to the X-Men. Would you take it? By the way, does Xavier have cats?" 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Breathe in, breathe out. 

Ryan was practicing taking deep breaths while walking along the grounds of the mansion. It's funny how the walk seemed so much longer back. It probably was because as Ryan was walking to the mansion she had a purpose, something to accomplish. Now as she walked back she was just enjoying the time. She smiled to herself, she was sure that Wolverines nose would have caught her scent on the grounds along time ago. 

"Sabertooth would have caught it by now." she said. 

As she walked she started to think about her past. She began remembering the girl she had once called her best friend. They did everything together. When Ryan was having problems at home she was beside her to help her deal with them. On the flip side Ryan was always there for her. It was funny how when Ryan needed her friend the most she couldn't be there for her. She would never forget that day… the day she found her boyfriend and her best friend together. It was one of those moments when you run to your best friend to cry and she tells you he wasn't good enough for you anyway. That couldn't happen though because her best friend had hurt her too. 

"Wait Ryan I can explain everything. It just happened." Ryan's best friend had told her. 

/Things like that don't just happen./ Ryan thought. 

She began to sing a song that always cheered her up when she felt down. It was by the Beach Boys. No one could ever feel upset listening to the Beach Boys. 

_Wouldn't it be nice if we were older Then we wouldn't have to wait so long And wouldn't it be nice to live together In the kind of world where we belong _

You know its gonna make it that much better When we can say goodnight and stay together 

Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up In the morning when the day is new And after having spent the day together Hold each other close the whole night through 

Happy times together we've been spending I wish that every kiss was neverending Wouldn't it be nice 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb, Angelo and Jonas sat on the roof. 

"I hate to break it to you guys, but I need to go shopping." 

"Ya sure you don't want to live outta my suit case, chica?" 

Jonas smiled. "Ahhh, so they ARE Angelos clothes. I thought so, but I didn't want to offend you." 

"No they aren't mine, I'm a tom boy but I'm not THAT boyish. besides, I need more then just pants and shirts if you know what I mean." 

"Maybe one of the girls will go out with you later, maybe you and the new girl Athena. she needs stuff too." said Jonas. 

"I'll be sure to ask her. What about you grey, you up for it?" 

"Ah, si chica, never pass up a chance to see girls modeling underwear." 

Teb couldn't help but smile."yea we'll see..." she chuckled. 

**Teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan began thinking about the note she wrote. /Why did I warn them? They hurt Creed and would probably hurt me too but I don't want to hurt innocent people./ 

All Ryan really wanted to do was to get back at her ex and she saw the X-men as a way to do it. He loved them... more then her. She wanted to ruin their lives so he would suffer. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Beast took the note. He glanced at what was written on it. 

"It would seem our mysterious visitor was bringing a warning. I think we should get this to the attention of the others post haste," he told her as they left the kitchen. 

Athena followed him, hoping she hadn't done anything wrong. He certainly seemed concerned about that note. Funny, she was usually so sure of herself, but here she felt so insignificant. Not that falling out of a tree and fainting in front of Iceman had been insignificant to her ego. How could she have done something so stupid in front of her favorite superhero? 

/If I could crawl in a hole and die I would,/ she thought. /I am curious about that girl who delivered the note. I could practically feel some sort of mental anguish in her. It was like she had a terrible choice to make, and didn't know what to do./ 

**snowbaby**

**_~The Rooftop~_**

"Well, I would love to stay and chat, but I feel like scaring you two a little." Jonas smiled and ran behind them. 

"Scare us?" Teb asked looking at Angelo, Angelo shrugged. 

There was a strange sound and a rumble from behind the and they turned back... and looked right into a pair of big blue cat like eyes... 

But more to that a dragon, a big one, 40 foot long, and it was smiling, spreading it's wing's 70 feet wide. 

"Yes, scare you!" Jonas said and laughed. "Sorry, I just had to change... I don't know it felt like this weird feeling and I had to change." 

Teb looked a little pale... you could not really judge Angelo but he looked puzzled. 

"Jonas?" Teb asked and looked at the big Grinning Dragon in front of her. 

"Yes, you asked about my power, well I'm strong invulnerable, can fly... and change in to a Dragon." Jonas said amused that he had gotten that reaction from the new girl. 

"Sorry I had to see what you would do, So what do you think." Jonas said flapping his wings and lifted in to the air. 

"Nice..." Teb said still looking puzzled. 

"Thanks I had a run in with this..." Jonas froze in mid air, sniffing and swung around, growling. 

"She is here? AGAIN!?!" Jonas roared out and started to fly in a direction away from the mansion. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan was humming to the song and in a rather weird mood Happy/sad/angry at the same time, singing had made her day a little brighter... until. 

A shadow passed over her quick, and before she knew what was going on Jonas was standing in front of her roaring loud. His every Dragon muscles was tightened. 

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!" Jonas roared out showing every tooth, his breath almost knocking her over. 

"ANOTHER COWARDLY ATTACK? IF YOU EVER COME CLOSE TO ANY ONE HERE I WILL KILL YOU!" Jonas roared again this time marking his words by driving his clawed hand deep in to the ground only two-foot in front of her. 

**Admiral**

**_~Teb and Angelo~_**

When Jonas flew off of the roof, Teb and Angelo went inside to watch tv. "I'm bored." 

"Me too, chica, me too." 

"Shouldn't you be like...teaching me something?" 

"Si." 

"Oh, just wondering." 

The two continued to watch tv. 

Bobby Drake walked in and sat between the two on the couch. 

"Hello, little lady. and who might you be?" 

"Um...I'm Teb." 

"Hi, I'm Bobby." 

"Gee, ya think?"she mumbled under her breath. 

Angelo smiled, Bobby ignored her comment. 

"So.." Bobby continued, "you wanna go do something? Ya know.. something a little more interesting then tv?" 

"Actually, I do." Teb said and got up and left the room. 

".....I meant with me..." Bobby said half to himself and half to Angelo. 

Angelo smiled and took a sip of soda. 

**TEB**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan looked at the dragon standing before her. She really didn't want to start a fight but she did have to defend herself. She morphed into the red dragon Mystique had been when they had first come to the mansion. 

It was strange sight for anyone to see. Two dragons circling each other, one waiting for the other to make the first move. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria blinked at Sammi and asked, "Didn't you know?" 

"No." 

Maria felt the urge to fall in anime style. She leaned closely toward the girl and whispered, "It's hard to explain. Logan, you shouldn't worry too much about. Except that he _might_ be a Skrull in disguise and that the real one is one of Apocalypse's henchmen." 

Sammi's eyes widen as Maria continued, "But the real one turned back to normal and gained his adamantium claws back." 

"What about Cyclops?" 

"You know about the fated battle between the Twelve and Apocalypse?" 

Sammi nodded. 

"At the end of the battle, Cyclops sacrificed his life to save Nate Grey from being merged with Apocalypse and got himself merged. He became one with him and it's still being debated on whether or not Scott is still alive in that monster. And at the very end, Apocalypse was still alive." 

"That sounds dumb." Sammi said angered. 

"I know. We can't afford to let anyone else, especially Nathan, Jean, and Scott about this." Maria said as they walked out. 

"About what?" Hank asked as he and Athena showed up. "Many apologies ladies, but someone told me to give this note to you, my Invisible Maria. She said that she's at the lawn." 

Maria accepted the note and looked down at it. "Oh my stars and garters." she muttered. 

"That's my line." 

"Sorry, gotta go. Tell the others that there will be an attack in a couple of hours." Maria said as she vanished and ran out to the lawn hoping to see Ryan there. 

**Maria Cline**

"An attack," Athena repeated. "What should I do? I don't seem to have any powers, but I don't want to just set here and vegetate!" 

She was beginning to get just a little tired of sitting on the proverbial shelf. As she felt the anger welling up inside of her, she realized she was lifting into the air. Suddenly she felt a surge of power, a rush of some kind. Her body engulfed by silver flames. Strange, it didn't hurt, but she did feel a bit chilly. 

Hank and Sammi stared as Athena stood covered in flames that seemed to emit a chill rather than warmth. Flames that burn cold. 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Gambit rested against the tree as Leilee rested against his chest. She looked up at him. "You know you're very comfy pillow, don't you?" 

Remy smiled. "It's one of Remy's best qualities." 

Leilee laughed and poked at him. "Flirt." 

Remy smiled and leaned forward, kissing her neck. 

"Ah! That tickles," She giggled as she turned around, tickling him back. 

They ended up wrestling around on the ground for a good five minutes before Remy effectively pinned her. "I win, Chere." 

"Don't you mean Cherie?" she grinned. 

Remy smiled down and leaned forward to kiss her, but before their lips could touch, a little beeping sound filled the air. They both groaned audibly. 

"Of course. Such is the story of my life," sighed Leilee. 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The smell of the Red dragon filled his nose, the sight of the Dragon that had Attacked him, attacked Sammi... they where circling each other... who would make the fatal move. 

Jonas was on the edge of losing it, he had more of the dragon nature, and it was telling him to protect his nest... his home his friends and mate. 

"BACK OFF!" He roared and hissed showing his teeth. Never had he felt a rage burning this hard... his instinct's was yelling for him to kill. 

"I beat you once, remember..." Ryan hissed back and her wings was wide apart her head low to the ground looking up at him. 

Jonas had a similar posture and growled as he remembered. 

Anything could set the situation off, they were both waiting for the other one to either give up, or fight. 

Suddenly..... 

"JONAS, NO!!!!" Maria yelled out in fear when she got to them and saw them. 

Jonas swung around, to yell for her to get out, the sound of her voice cutting into him like a knife. 

Ryan, more out of instinct then the desire to fight, or maybe Jonas sudden movement scared her... jumped him. 

Now the fight was unavoidable... 

Ryan dug her claws in to his side and roared out as Jonas yelled out in pain and side stepped and got away. 

His tail came around and smacked the side of her head. 

She jumped onto him knocking him over... 

Rolling around, ripping, slashing at each other, drawing up a cloud of dust so thick that Maria could no longer see who was who... 

Suddenly, one of them lifted into the air. Jonas dug his back claws deep into the back of Ryan, but he was scratched just as badly by her, and was bleeding heavily. 

Ryan slashed out at him with one back leg and they both fell down from over 50 meters up, but stood up seemingly unharmed... 

Roaring, growling, hissing and screaming... Jonas jumped her and they rolled over on their sides, kicking and slashing while flapping their wings to get on top. 

Maria looked on terrified while they battled it out. 

Ryan scratched Jonas across the face, and he responded by slashing with his tail over her back and took to the air, this time they both got a lot higher. 

Ryan got Jonas over the back grabbing one of his wings, almost breaking it... He roared out and swung around grabbing her by her front legs. 

They both started to fall quick, probably not realizing how high up they were. 

Crashing into the ground, they tumbled around a bit before final coming to a stop both stood up, glaring at each other... 

They were both bleeding and looking rather bruised and obviously in pain, but no mercy was asked or given, Ryan jumped Jonas who was still trembling from the fall. 

Jonas got pinned down by Ryan, who bit down on his shoulder and ripped out a big bite, he screamed, slamming everything he had into his feet and threw her off. 

Now in complete rage he was slashing and biting Ryan who was taken back by the sudden burst... until he landed on her chest kicking her hard... there was a cracking sound. 

Ryan felt the world fade away, and her body went limp. Jonas went down for the kill his jaws hovering over her neck ready to take her life... but he stopped. 

Looking at the battered body under him... 

"Did I do this?" he yelled and stepped back... "NO!" 

He was shaking, he loved it, the taste of her blood... the thrill of the fight, and he had been about to kill her. 

"NOOO!" he roared out and ran away in to the Forrest to tired to fly. 

Ryan didn't move... her breaths short and heavy. 

**Admiral**

"Oh no." Maria muttered as she ran over to the red dragon. "Hang on, Ryan." She said as she fight the urge to get sick. **I won't throw up. I won't throw up.** she told herself as she took off her jacket and press it against the wound. "Ryan, you're a shapeshifter right? Is that your power? Were you the fake Britney Spears?" 

Ryan didn't respond. Maria let out a high pitched shriek in hopes to startle her. 

Ryan opened one eye in weariness. 

"If you are, just focus. Concentrate. Please, heal yourself. You must have the ability to do so. Just try. Don't die on me." 

Ryan closed her eye as Maria barked out, "WAKE UP!" 

Ryan jerked her head up as she stared at her. Slowly the wounds start to close together. 

"That's it." Maria said as she looked up to see Leilee and Gambit running to her. She focused her voice like Banshee taught her and she yelled behind her, "LEILEE OVER HERE!!! WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!" 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Angelo and Teb had made their way into the kitchen, when they heard all the commotion outside. 

"We should probably go do something..." 

"Si chica, we should." 

The two continued making smores over the toaster. 

"WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?!?" Emma yelled. 

"Geeze, she scared the hell outta me. I thought she left." 

"I can still hear you!" 

"Sorry Ms. Frost." Angelo apologized. 

"Don't say you're sorry, Grey, we were just making smores." 

"There's a fight outside. You should have been there in case your teammates needed you." 

"What am I going to do, huh 'MS. FROST'?!? Stretch out my skin and pat them on the back?! There's enough X folk in this building with useful powers... I don't think it will make a big difference if me and Grey here have a snack!" Teb was yelling. 

"Whoa chica." 

Emma glared at Teb and walked away muttering to herself about manners. 

"I REALLY dislike her," Teb muttered around smore. 

**Teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

It's funny the things you think of when you are dying. As Ryan lay on the grass she thought of her life back home. It all seemed so frivolous and insignificant. She spent most of her time out at clubs, getting drunk, picking up on guys that wanted nothing more from her then a good time. When she thought about it harder in reality that was all she wanted from them as well. Most people didn't believe Ryan when she said this but she did have some morals. She didn't like to see innocent people hurt. 

That's what Sinister was planning to do and she was helping him. Now she was torn between two wrongs. It was wrong to betray Sinister and Sabertooth's trust. She was part of their team and she had grown attached to Victor. The other one was that it was wrong to hurt innocent people. That was why she brought the note to the mansion. She wanted to hurt the X-men not the people that fought with them. She wanted to destroy a little bit of her ex-boyfriends life just like he had destroyed hers. 

The whole thing never seemed real to her until now. They only people she saw getting hurt where comic book characters but now it was different. She was hurt and the others would be hurt later when Sinister attacked. Victor might be hurt, she thought to herself. 

"WAKE UP!" A voice broke through Ryan's thoughts. "Hold on help is coming." 

**Le Fae**

Leilee ran over and dropped onto her knees, ignoring the pain that shot through her legs. 

"Oh my goddess.....What happened? Wait. I don't want to know. Just back up. I'll try and fix this. Somebody go after Jonas." 

She looked over Ryan's body, and took stock of her injuries. Ok. Cracked ribs, some deep cuts, possible internal bleeding. Leilee gently placed her hands on Ryan's chest and stomach and closed her eyes. She could feel every body function in Ryan's body. From her heartbeat to the blood cells bumping against the walls of her veins. She helped the platlets close up the wounds all over her body. 

Then, she focused on the internal bleeding. Her spleen had been ruptured. Only one thing to do until she could be put in surgery. She carefully cut off blood supply to the spleen. This would slow the internal bleeding and make it easier to remove. 

Finally, the bones. Leilee was starting to feel dizzy, and a little nauseous, but she had to finish. Slowly, she could feel the bones knit under her fingertips. 

Looking up, she smiled weakly. "Tell Hank she's stablized, but she needs her spleen removed. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to faint." As soon as the words left her lips, darkness claimed her and she slumped onto Ryan. 

**Leilee**

"Leilee!" Maria yelled out as she checked to see if she's okay. "Thanks." 

"Cherie!" Gambit said as he picked her up. 

"I think she's fine." Maria said in relief. "She must've over exerted her powers. Just put her in the med lab where she can rest." 

"That's what I was thinking." Gambit said as he walked off. Maria sighed in relief as she remembered, "Oh no! We gotta get prepared for battle. AMANADA!!!" 

**Maria Cline**

Teb and Angelo strolled out just as Leilee fainted. 

Teb finishing her smore, "Damn. Now they're just trying to make me feel guilty." 

**Teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi and Hank were warning the others, til they heard Maria yell. Sammi didn't think, she just ran. As she got close she smelled it, a mixture of bloods. One she couldn't tell the other she knew was Jonas's. She smelled it when he first got hurt as the Dragon and she knew she would never forget it. 

She picked up her speed and as she rounded the last corner to go outside she telepathically yelled,"The Dragon's back and Jonas's is hurt." 

As she got outside she saw Maria, Leilee and Gambit over the red Dragon. She popped her claws. 

As she got closer she yelled," What happened? Where's Jonas? I know he's hurt." She didn't care about the Red Dragon, all she could think of was Jonas." I called the others they are on their way. Where is he?" 

Maria looked up, and said,"He went to the woods, after he did this." She sounded angry. 

Sammi couldn't think, all she did was turn and run to the woods. /Jonas, please be OK?/ She thought as she ran. She let her nose lead the way. 

When she came to the clearing she saw him. Lying on the ground. He sounded like He was crying. 

"Jonas?" Sammi said as she slowed down and walked over to him. 

"Go Away!" Jonas yelled not even turning. 

"Haven't you figured it out yet. I'm never leaving you. I can't. I love you too much." Sammi said as she reached his side. "Besides, you're hurt and I'm not in the mood to deal with the Red Dragon or Bimbo Spears, so you're stuck with me." 

"Didn't you hear? I'm a killer. I did that to the Red Dragon. I did it." 

"I heard you. You didn't kill it. You basically just hurt it as much as it hurt you." Sammi said placing a hand on his neck. 

"I may have not killed it but I wanted to. I couldn't help it. I needed to protect the house, the others and you." Jonas said turning his head towards her. 

"You were doing just that. You were protecting you territory. Why do you think I took off after Creed, by myself, after you were hurt. I was protecting my territory, you." She said as she kneeled down next to his face. 

"You didn't go by yourself though. Logan was with you." Jonas said turning his face away to look out into the forest. 

"Logan followed me. After I knew you were fine. I heard laughing, and I went towards it. I was ready to kill for what they did to you. I guess Logan followed me. I got Creed to take me as bait, that's when you showed up. I still felt the need to protect you. That's why I still drew him away from you." Sammi said slowly rubbing her hand on Jonas's dragon cheek. 

"But you didn't kill him." Jonas said starting to cry. 

"No but I wanted to. I almost did. As I was charging my fireworks. I almost let it go on full, I had to stop myself. Just like you did. I have to deal with the beast inside of me, just as much as Logan and you." Sammi said still stroking his cheek. 

"But I could have." Jonas said more to himself. 

"BUT YOU DIDN'T!" Sammi yelled as she picked his head up so he was looking her in the eye. "YOU DIDN'T!! I know you. Better than you think. I know your not a killer, just as I know that Logan isn't a killer. When he did kill is was because he was programed to, not because he wanted to. He's not Creed, and I'm not and NEITHER are you. Got that? You are not a killer, and if you say that you are then I am too, because when you were hurt the only thing I could think of was KILLING whoever did that to you. I'm not a killer am I? I was protecting you, because I love you. That's all that you were doing. Protecting." She said as she looked in his eyes. "I here right now because I know your hurt. I can smell your blood. And I love you too much to try and kill that dragon over there, while you're hurt. Got that?" 

"Yeah. I think. You may have to drill it in to my head a few hundred mor times, because Dragon's have thick skulls, ya know?" Jonas said licking her in the face. 

Sammi made a face and said,"So your trying to kill me with that breath again, huh?" She smiled,"But I love you anyway. Bad breath and all." She kissed him on the nose, got up and said,"Now let me see you wounds. Maybe there is a nother claw in there again." 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda had enjoyed her day out with the X-Men women. They had spent a lovely two hours riding horses in the park; but it all ended too soon when their beepers went off. 

"There is trouble at the mansion, we must hurry." said Storm, as she turned her horse around and galloped back to the stables at top speed. 

Amanda sighed. She had just been feeling a little peace of mind from what had happened the night before. She turned her horse around, and galloped after Jubilee and Rogue. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara had run outside when her beeper went off; she got there just in time to see the red dragon go down, and Jonas the dragon fly off into the woods. She was terrified; never had she been witness to such carnage...not in real life. 

Cara watched as the others ran to the dragon; she herself stood on the sidelines, just watching the events unfold with a sort of unreal, surreal feeling. She felt helpless, and didn't know what to do. 

Cara's eyes opened in shock when the dragon changed form; it was the girl from the club...Ryan! 

"OH NO!!!" Cara cried, and ran in the direction of the fallen girl. 

Maria stepped in front of Cara and grabbed her by the arms. 

"It's okay! She'll be okay!" she told the frantic girl, "Leilee stopped the internal bleeding. She'll be okay!" 

Rogue came flying onto the property just as Beast made it outside; Rogue had flown ahead of the others because they had gotten stuck in a traffic jam. 

"Rogue! Please bring the girl inside; we'll have to operate immediately!" Beast said. 

"Sure thing sugah!" Rogue said as she picked up the girl, and flew with her into the house. 

Beast followed, leaping and bounding across the broad lawn. All the others could do was wait and see... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Twenty minutes later, Cara's communicator beeped. She was sitting in a tree at the beginning of the forest...She tapped the communicator to turn it on. 

"Yeah?" she asked. 

"Cara. Please report to the medlab, immediately. It is urgent!" Beast's voice came through. 

Cara was surprised; but she dropped down out of the tree and took off in a run at top speed back to the mansion. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda and the others had pulled up at the mansion, and were greeted by a very worried and upset Maria. 

"Maria! What's Wrong?" Amanda asked. 

Maria began to fill her in on what had happened, and the upcoming battle. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara arrived at the medlab somewhat out of breath; Beast greeted her at the door and ushered her in. 

"What is it Beast? What's wrong? Is Ryan alright?" asked the worried girl. 

"She came out of surgery okay, but she is still in a coma. And is in need of a blood transfusion. I tested her blood; you are the only one out of your group that is a match." Beast said. 

"If you need me to donate blood, that's okay," said Cara. She hated needles, but she could take it if it meant helping a friend. She still thought of the girl as a friend, even if she did like Creed. 

Cara followed Beast; she got onto a table next to the one that Ryan was on. She turned her head and gritted her teeth as Beast hooked her up. Then she thought of something, and frowned. 

"Why did you match her blood against my and my fellow travelers blood?" she asked. 

"I believe her to be from your world." said Beast. 

**Rainfall**


	13. Reality Bites-Part 13

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. There is no money being made off of this story.

Notes: Thank you for the good reviews folks! :-) You're a wonderful bunch of readers. :-) Now, on with the Story!!!

**Reality Bites--Part 13**

When Mystique couldn't find Ryan anywhere around the mall, she went back to Creed's. When she found she wasn't there, she told Sinister and he decided the attack was to be moved up. They were going now. 

**_~On the edge of the woods~_**

"I heard the runt's cub mention the red dragon... that means they got her and I'm going to get her back." Creed said as he headed for the spot where Jonas and Sammi were. 

**_~Jonas and Sammi~_**

Sammi was looking over the wounds. "Well, there's no claws so you should heal good." She stopped when she heard a twig break and started smelling around, then she caught it... Creed. She telepathically sent to Jonas,"Creed's coming.", and to the others,"The Battle started Early. Creed's in the woods. I think the others are behind him." 

**_~In the house~_**

Logan heard Sammi's message and started running. /She got Creed once... it's gonna be real hard to get him again./He thought as he neared the opening where they were. He heard Creed talking to her and her talking back. /Keep him distracted./ He thought as he got up into the trees. 

**_~Sammi and Jonas~_**

"What did you do to her, frail?" Creed asked as he and Sammi were circling each other. 

"Who are you talkin' about, bub?" Sammi said. 

"Don't mess with me, girly. You may be his cub, but I got a score to settle with him and I don't mind taking it out on you." Sabertooth said as he jumped. 

Sammi fired some High grade fireworks at him. Blinding him but only for a second. 

When Logan saw Creed jump at Sammi he came out of his hiding place. "Why don't you mess with me, Creed, and Leave the girl alone." 

Logan and Creed started circling each other. 

"How sweet. You're protecting your cub and her dragon." Creed taunted. 

"Are you into talking or fighting, Creed?" Logan said as he lunged at Creed. 

Sammi was over by Jonas and saw Creed's claws, they were made of adamantium. 

"Logan, His claws!" She yelled but then she saw that she distracted him, and that Creed was about to make a fatal blow. 

She ran and pushed Logan out of the way, just in time to recieve the claws coming down into her back and neck. One of his claws pierced her skull into her brain. She was unconscious before she hit the ground and Creed was still attacking her. 

Logan and Jonas saw this and both screamed, "SAMMI!!!!" 

Jonas quickly drew in a breath and Breathed a flaming breath at Creed, sending him flying off of her. 

Logan yelled,"Get her to Hank!! I'll handle him!!!" Jonas picked her up and went running towards the house. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Med Lab~_**

Ryan woke slowly taking in the new surroundings. "Where am I?" She asked worriedly. The last thing she remembered was fighting with the dragon. 

"You're in the med lab." A girl answered her cautiously. Ryan recognized the girl, it was the one she had given the message too earlier. "I got baby sitting duty because I haven't been trained in my powers yet. In fact I just found them not so long ago." 

Ryan looked to her side. The girl Cara was resting beside her and on the other side was the girl Victor had attacked. 

"Cara gave blood to you and Leilee healed you enough so Beast could operate on you. " The new girl stated gesturing to the girls on either side of Ryan. 

"Oh." It was all Ryan could say. No one has ever done anything like that for her before. Then again no one has needed to do it. 

She looked to the girl sitting before her. The girl still seemed uneasy around Ryan. 

"I don't bite you know" Ryan said trying to lighten the mood. 

The girl chuckled "I'm sorry it's just I feel like I don't belong." 

Ryan smiled "Who really belongs anywhere? You make your place in the world and then you deal with it." 

**Le Fae**

"I'm really sorry, I don't mean to be rude. I just get a little nervous around people I've never met. For what it's worth, I felt terrible about running off like that. I had a feeling you were struggling with a problem. If you would like to talk about it, I right here. By the way, I'm Athena Ryker." 

**snowbaby**

"It's ok… you weren't rude. I have a lot of friends like that who don't get along with new people or are careful around them. I'm Ryan by the way. I am kind of the oddball in the group. I talk to everyone and I usually like people right off the bat. I think I am too trusting that way... Oh you wanted to know what was on my mind... I'm just worried… I don't want Victor to get hurt in the battle that is coming later. I don't know why but I care for him. I always did have bad taste in men." 

**Le Fae**

In the bed next to Ryan's, Leilee suddenly shot up, groaned and clutched at her head. "Ok. Pain. Bad." She turned her head to look at Ryan. "Are you ok?" 

"Yes." Ryan said, looking curiously at her. 

Leilee was stood up and popped some advil in her mouth. Then all of a sudden, her eyes widened. "OH CRAP! The Battle!!!!!" 

**Leilee**

"Leilee, I sure you aren't in any condition for a battle. There are plenty of others who can handle the situation. Perhaps, you should rest, and concentrate on getting better," Athena said. "Now, Ryan, I don't know what to say about Victor. I'm sure he can take care of himself. And remember, X-Men don't kill, so you needn't fear for his life. It is really an admirable quality to be able to see the good in someone who is so... complex(?) as Victor. I hope he realizes what a true friend you are." 

"We are all part good and part evil. No one is born one way or the other. Influence is the deciding factor, it's what shapes our personalities. We all have the capability of being bad. Our individual experiences define whether or not we act on evil impulses. You will probably not find a better case study of this fact than our Wolverine. I imagine Victor is not all that different. None of us are all that different. I don't think you should be worrying about any of this right now. Get some rest, things will look better when you are not so tired and injured. I'll be around when you wake up if you need to talk," Athena soothed. 

**snowbaby**

"The battle has already started. I have to go! I have to protect Victor! You guys hate him he will be killed!" Ryan was trying to get up off the bed and Athena ran over to her. 

"No, you're too hurt you won't do any good. They won't kill him don't worry. Stay put!" Athena yelled at her. 

Ryan wasn't listening... the only thing going through her head was that Victor was in trouble and he needed her. 

**Le Fae**

During this commotion, Leilee had snuck out. She had to find the others. Her head throbbed, but that could be dealt with later. Right now, she just had to get outside. AS she ran down the hall, she saw Remy running towards the Med-room. 

"Remy! Come on! The battle!" she shouted in french. 

Remy looked at her, surprised and a little confused. 

Leilee's mind whirred. "You aren't Remy, are you, Mystique?" 

The shapeshifter shifted into a bulky figure. Tall. Blonde. Massive. Sabretooth. "You're dead, frail." 

Leilee looked into Sabretooth's eyes and bit her lip. She had to face it. She could do it. She didn't have to be afraid anymore. Suddenly, her back straightened, and her eyes took on a hardened look. 

Mystique felt a wetness trickling down her leg. "What the..." she said as she looked down and realized she had wet herself. As she looked down, she started to get very dizzy. Like when you stand on the edge of a cliff and look down. The vertigo increased in intensity, until Mystique fell to her knees. And still Leilee stood there. Not moving. 

Finally, Mystique felt a tremor pass through her body. She was no longer Sabretooth, but in her own form. Her body had betrayed her. 

Leilee looked at her with no pity in her eyes. "Good night." 

Those were the last words Mystique heard before darkness claimed her. 

**Leilee**

**_~Med Lab~_**

"If you don't lie down and rest willingly, I'll have to ask Hank or Cece to give you something to make you lie still!!!" I hate being pushy, thought Athena, but if driven to it I can play tough. 

**snowbaby**

"He could be dead by the time I wake up. I have to get to him. Please let me go!" 

Ryan was frantic. She kept picturing Wolverine and Sabertooth in a bloody battle. She didn't want Victor to hurt anyone and she didn't want him to get hurt. 

"You're going to be dead if you get out of this bed. Don't worry he will be fine. He has a healing factor." Athena was trying to reassure Ryan that Victor would be ok... but it wasn't working. 

**_~Out On the Battlefield~_**

"Creed you're a dead man!" Wolverine screamed popping his claws. 

The two growled and screamed at each other. 

"The frail got in my way!" Creed was frantic he could smell Ryan's blood on the grounds of the mansion and was convinced that she was dead. He would kill the person responsible for her death. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria turned invisible as she ran over to the fight. Suddenly, she saw a another group of people. A blue woman with a gun, a big man with angel wings, and several others that she recognized. 

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE EVIL SCUM!!!" Maria boomed as she turned visible. **That sounds so corny.** she thought as she made her uniform visible and her civilian clothes invisible. 

"Who are you?" Mimic asked. 

"I'm... Sonique." Maria said then she let out a sonic scream, "AAAAIEEEEEE!!!" 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"HANK!!" Jonas yelled out in the corridor, he had changed back into human form, and was bleeding, most of the wounds covered by his undamaged uniform. 

Hank's eyes went wide as Jonas came in to view in the door, Sammi's limp body in his arms. She was hurt... bad, blood from her head and back ran down Jonas arms and chest. 

"What happened!" Hanks said Grabbing Sammi as Cecilia was getting ready. 

"Creed, he... ehh." Jonas clasped down at his side and rested back against the wall. 

"He attacked her..." He tried to stand but slid down to the floor. 

Athena ran to his side to see if she could help, but as she came close, Jonas slapped her away... she slammed into a nearby wall, losing her breath. 

"Hank, can you help..." Jonas said weakly before blacking out. 

Athena gathered her self-up and took a deep breath. 

"Victor!! If you hurt him..." Ryan Screamed, jumping of the bed, but the pain caused her to blackout the second she stood up and she fell to the ground. 

**Admiral**

Athena dragged Ryan back onto the bed, silently wishing she had superhuman strength. Ryan wasn't heavy, but Athena was very small. That slap from Jonas, was a bit rough on her tiny frame. 

/Why did he hit me,/ she thought. /The opposition seems to be treating me better than the team. Oh well, let them have their fun, I'm used to being treated like the red headed step-child. Forgive and forget! Although, the last person to slap me found himself speaking an octave higher for a while. I have learned to control my bad temper much better since then,/ she thought as she shot Jonas her best go to blazes look. 

Actually she couldn't help feeling a little sorry for him, she knew what it was like to watch a loved one die. She also thought briefly how he and Ryan were both really fighting for the same thing, the defense of someone important in their lives. 

As she carefully reinserted the I.V. Ryan had knocked out, Athena felt badly about being angry with Jonas. He was only worried about Sammi. 

/He still shouldn't have taken it out on me, but that doesn't matter. What matters is Sammi, I hope she will be alright. I suppose I'm just a little upset that I keep getting snubbed, except by Ryan. It just makes me so distrustful of everyone. My only friend here is a "bad guy." I suppose what with the history of these other X-types, that means I fit right in. Wow, that's pretty bad./ 

**snowbaby**

"Oh, not again!" groaned Cara, as she watched everything around her erupt into total chaos. 

Everyone she knew and cared about were getting hurt... Sammi was injured; Ryan was injured; Jonas was injured as well. There was some sort of big battle going on outside; she wanted to go help, but she didn't want to leave her friends either. 

"Okay, I'm going to try this splitting thing one more time; If I remember correctly, there was a time that Jamie split and one of his dupes went all the way around the world without him, and Jamie didn't get hurt... if he can do that, so can I!" Cara said. 

She got up from the table, and smashed one of her fists into the palm of her other hand; two Caras stood where one had been before. The two Caras looked at each other, and then one of them ran out of the room. 

The other Cara sat back down; she felt a little woozy after giving blood. Cara looked up to see the shocked expression on the face of the girl known as Athena. 

Cara smiled and held out her hand. 

"Hi! I'm Cara; You're Athena, right? It's nice to meet you. I'm sorry that I haven't gotten around to meeting you; things have been a little strange and chaotic lately. Kind of hard to meet the new arrivals when I alway seem to be in another place. Oh well. Hey, when this battle is over, would you like to join me for a triple chocolate peanut butter shake? It's my speciality." 

**Rainfall**

"I'm Athena, does it hurt when you do that? I'm sorry, but it just looks painful. I would feel pretty sorry for the world if there was more than one of me running around. I would love a triple chocolate peanut butter shake, but only if you let me make my double chocolate cheesecake with raspberry sauce. It's my speciality, and my most requested. When not soothing possible villians and being knocked into walls, I'm a wedding coordinator. Catering is part of it." Athena informed her with a smile. 

**snowbaby**

Cara started to laugh when Athena said the part about feeling sorry about the world. 

"I know what you mean; I feel the same way... one brat like me in the world is enough; though I can't wait to see the looks on my parents faces when four or more of me show up on the doorstep back home!" Cara said, mischievously grinning. 

"Also, I would love some of your double chocolate cheesecake with raspberry sauce! Cheesecake has got to be one of my absolute favorite desserts!" Cara said. 

Then she got a thoughtful look on her face, and stroked her chin with one hand. "Catering huh? You know what? There are a few other new arrivals that I haven't had a chance to meet, and I don't think that anyone else has really had a chance to interact with them either. Would it be too much if I asked you to help me plan a little party for the X-Men, Generation-X, and our little group of travelers? I think it would give us all a chance to get to know each other better." 

**Rainfall**

"Party? You just said the magic word. The whole reason I got into the wedding business is because I love to plan parties," Athena confided. "When this is over, we'll have to chat about what kind of party you have in mind, and of course what kind of budget we're looking at." 

Athena was all business as she spoke, planning a party certainly put her in her element. She felt in control for the first time since she had arrived, and she loved it. 

**snowbaby**

Cara grinned at Athena... she had a feeling that they were going to be really good friends. 

"I'm sure Xavier will give you a lot of leeway for the party. He's a pretty good guy." said Cara. 

/And if he doesn't, I'm sure I can talk him into it...I can be pretty persuasive!/ thought Cara, as her dimples began to show. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The other Cara got outside just as Maria screamed. 

/Man I'm glad that scream wasn't in my direction!/ she thought, as Mimic flew threw the air and crashed into a tree. 

There were some other villains that she didn't recognize. 

/Great! I have no idea who these people are, or what they are capable of. I didn't read enough comic books back home... I'll have to rectify that when I get back./ she thought. 

Cara punched her fist into her hand twice; then the four Caras began to all pick up stones, rocks, poker chips, anything they could get their hands on... energizing the little objects and throwing them at the ground in front of the invading forces... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Creed was going crazy; here he was, face-to-face with the runt he'd sworn to kill, and all he could think about was Ryan...Was she dead? 

Sabertooth and Wolverine circled each other, then lunged...claws tearing flesh and clothing; fists hitting, bruising, breaking... 

Sabertooth's heart wasn't in the fight. He could smell Ryan's blood; knew she was hurt bad. He had to get away from the fight and leave it for another day...he had to find Ryan and make sure she was alright. 

"AHHHHHHHRRRGGGG!!!" Sabertooth roared, as he picked up Wolverine and bashed him against the ground, effectively knocking out his opponent. He took off running; somewhere inside his mind, he realized what he had just done... he had let Wolverine live because he was more worried about a girl then he was bent on revenge. 

Sabertooth slipped unnoticed into the mansion during all of the chaos... he followed his nose to the medlab. There was Wolverine's cub, and her boyfriend... Beast was fussing over them. Two other girls sat on a table, talking... and on the table next to them... was Ryan! 

"AHHHHHHHRRRGGGG!!!" Sabertooth roared, and he leapt into the room. He lunged at the surprised Beast, grabbing him by the throat and picking him up in the air. 

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER!!! YOU'RE GONNA PAY...YOU'RE ALL GONNA PAY IF SHE DIES!" Sabertooth shouted, as he threw Beast HARD against the far wall of the room. Beast hit his head and went down. 

Sabertooth turned his attention toward Sammi and Jonas... they were both unconscious, but he didn't care. He was going to make them pay. Both Athena and Cara lunged for him; he batted them away and against the wall as if they were nothing but flies. He strode purposefully over to Sammi and Jonas's bedsides, and unsheathed his claws, holding them over the throats of the two. 

"SABERTOOTH, STOP!!!" A shout stopped Victor cold. He turned around to see Ryan sitting up in bed, her eyes wide and her face pale with fear and pain. 

"Please don't hurt them...Please! I can't live with myself if they get hurt... they haven't done anything. PLEASE!" she asked, her eyes pleading with him. 

Sabertooth pulled in his claws, and ran over to Ryan. He picked her up, unhooked her from the machines and said, "Alright, I won't hurt them. For your sake. But I'm getting you out of here... I don't trust them. I'm taking you somewhere safe." 

And he ran out of the medlab, down the hall, and outside before anyone had time to blink. He knew of a place, somewhere safe from the X-Men, and from Sinister's wrath... Sinister had found out about Ryan's betrayal, and had told the others to kill her. Sabertooth wasn't about to let that happen. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee grunted as she lugged Mystique into the Danger Room. She ran up to the control tower and locked her in, over-riding the override parameters and coding the lock so only she could let the villain out. That way, she couldn't morph into an X-men and let herself out. 

After setting the lock, she walked to her room and showered and changed into fitted jeans and a tight teeshirt that said, "I Make Boys Cry." From what she had heard, the battle was over, and they would have to report soon to the Professor for debriefing. She only hoped they wouldn't freak out when they heard where Mystique was... 

**Leilee**

**_

~Sabretooth's Safehouse~

_**

"You're going to be fine frail…" Sabertooth was seething. 

He was angry with the X-Men for hurting Ryan but was also angry with her for getting them in this mess. Why did she go warn them about the attack? Mystique was the first to find out about the betrayal. Ryan took off from the mall and Mystique followed her. Sabertooth didn't believe it when he heard it. Then Sinister ordered her dead if the X-Men didn't already kill her. Sabertooth knew the X-Men didn't kill but when he got to the mansion and smelled her blood everywhere… he began to think the worst. 

Now she was lying in his bed at his safe house fighting for her life. The same people she went to save had put her in this position and then she saved them again. Victor was ready to kill everyone in that room when he saw her lying there all lifeless. Then she awoke and begged him not to hurt anyone. They just barely made it to the safe house alive. He had to be careful not to leave a scent the runt could follow plus he had to avoid Sinister. 

Ryan's eyelashes began to flutter just a little, a sign that she was waking up. She opened her eyes and looked to Victor … he had an angry expression on his face. 

"Good thing you don't scare me because a look like that could cause a girl to faint." Ryan said trying to crack the hard expression he was giving her…it didn't work. 

"I just want to know why?" 

"I only wanted to hurt the X-Men… In my world they aren't real, and you aren't real. In my world you're all comic book characters. My ex-boyfriend was a big fan of the X-Men, so I wanted to destroy a little bit of his life. It didn't seem wrong because I never saw any of you as real people. Then I met the X-Men's new friends and well I knew they were like me… I don't want to hurt innocent people." Ryan tried to explain but it all sounded lame to her and she knew she wasn't making sense. 

"I don't get you frail, but when has a man ever really understood a woman." 

Ryan giggled but winced in pain as she did it. "Ok I won't hold it against you if you don't make me laugh for a while." 

"Get some rest frail. I'll make you a good breakfast in the morning that will knock you socks off." Victor said smiling. 

"Yum… Hey does this mean I can't call you Scooby anymore?" 

**Le Fae**

**_

==X-Mansion, Med Lab==

_**

Hank and Cece were working on Sammi. Creed's claw got her in the back of the head and punctured her brain. 

"I don't see any damage except for the slight hole which is healing itself as we speak." Hank said watching. There wasn't much he could do because her healing factor was doing the job. 

"It's going to take awhile but she should be fine." Cece said. She turned and looked where Jonas was lying. "He's healing well too. I think his dragon healing is carrying over to heal him. They are both very lucky." 

"Yes they are. Lucky that Ryan woke up when she did, or Creed would have finished them for sure." Hank said looking up as the door opened to reveal Scott and Logan. He could tell by the look on Logan's face that he was worried. They all were worried. 

"They're going to be fine as far as I can tell. Their healing factors are doing their jobs. They should be in perfect health by tomorrow." Hank said to Logan as he was looking between Jonas and Sammi. 

"I'm going to tell Jamar. He should know." Logan said as he left. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan opened the door. Jamar was still sleeping. /That sedative Hank gave him must be a doosie./ He thought. 

Logan walked over to the bed and gently shook Jamar. 

"What?" Jamar said as he slowly opened his eyes. When he saw Logan and the worried look on his face, he got scared. 

"What happened? Is Sammi alright?" Jamar asked Logan. Logan sat in the chair next to the bed. 

"It's bad, but Hank thinks she'll be fine by tomorrow. Creed attacked her. I got her out of the way but she saw something and pushed me out of the way and got Creed's claws in her back and neck. One of the claws punctured her brain, but her healing factor is taking care of it." Logan said looking at the ground. He couldn't stand to see the hurt in Jamar's eyes. 

"I want to see her." Jamar said getting up. 

"I'll take ya." Logan said as he headed towards the door with Jamar behind him. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb and Angelo were doing their part to clean up after the battle that made a big mess. 

"Finally!" said Teb, "Something our extra skin is useful for." 

"Si." 

"Ya know, it's not fair. Most people here have more then one power... like Sammi. she is like Wolverine and Jubilee. And Jonas. He's got the dragon and super powers!" Teb whined "It's not fair!" 

"Well Chica, maybe you have a power you just don't know what it is yet... you haven't been here long." 

Ange had a point... it took some people awhile before they found all their powers. 

"Well, I'll tell ya one thing..." Teb said, and Ange looked at her and waited for her to continue. "We both have got a skill of pissing people off." 

"Si, chica, we do." 

"Well, I feel all gritty. I am going to go take a shower and put on some of your clean clothes." 

Ange chuckled. "They're too big for you Chica." 

"Oh well." 

**Teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee sat barefoot at the dinner table, playing Chinese Solitaire. King. Queen. Four. King. Ace. five. nine. five. King. three. Damn, fourth King. She lost. As she gathered the cards and started to shuffle absent-mindedly, the familiar scent of cologne filled her nostrils. She breathed it in deeply and smiled. 

"Hello, Remy." 

"Hello, Chere." 

"Time for the debriefing?" 

"Oui." 

She set the cards aside, stood up and smiled, taking his hand. "Let's go." 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas slowly opened his eyes, and at the same time opened his mind to the pain that came of waking up. 

He moved one hand, pain didn't matter, it never did it was only in your mind it could never hurt you... 

/Bite it down.../ he thought as the wounds made themselves known. 

The top of his uniform was removed he noted... moving his hand up to touch his chest seeing a large scare across it, it looked like it was several days old and almost healed. 

He suddenly saw the I.V. in his arm, the motion was quick and he ripped it out... blood trailed down his arm. 

The next thing he noted was the sound of a heart monitor, it was Sammi's Heart. 

Jonas tried to sit up, the pain ran through his body like lightning and for a second it looked like he was about to fall back, but he bit it down... forcing himself up. 

His body felt stiff, tired, and as he sat down his feet on the cold floor the whole world started to spin. 

He fell down to the floor grabbing the side of the bed, forgetting his strength he tipped it over with a loud bang, he was furious, Sammi was hurt, it must be his fault... he promised he would protect her. 

He would die for her... 

"NOOOO!!!" he screamed out and kicked the bed with full strength, the bed was thrown in to one of the walls and almost went right through it. 

But this bed was not near enough to take his mind of the frustration build up inside him, the rage turned red and his field of view turned to nothing more then that of a tunnel. 

He stood up on uncertain legs, his own heart the only sound in his ears, he had to get out of here before he lost it completely... he could not risk hurting her more. 

He didn't know how far he had stumbling in corridors... but there was someone talking to him in his head, someone was yelling at him, tugging his arms... he would have nothing of it, he didn't care... 

"LET ME GO!" he yelled out ands shrugged who ever was trying to hold him off his arms, there was a pain in his head... someone was in his head, trying to either calm him down or shut him down... 

Nothing mattered, his rage was so complete, only one thing mattered right then and there... Creed.. He was Dead... he just was not buried yet, he would rip him from limb to limb... 

Again someone got in his head this time the pain was unbearable even for him, but he didn't fall... instead he slammed in front of him with all of his might hoping that it would stop... he hit a wall. 

He blacked out... 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Jonas... JONAS!! Do you hear me..." 

Jonas focused his eyes and looked in to the Green eyes of Rogue, he blinked, she was holding his wrist. 

"Rogue?" Jonas said dizzy... realizing that Rogue was not the only one holding him, he was on his knees, in the Forest. 

"Thanks... he has calmed down now." Jean said as she dropped the telekinetic field around him, she could feel him calm down. 

"You sure?" Bobby said stepping away. 

Jonas could see Rogue, Jean, Bobby, Hank, Cara, Maria and Leilee standing around him, or trying to hold him down. 

He felt really dizzy, what was he doing in the Forest... why was all these people around him, some was looking rather angry... most notably Leilee, why? 

"What...?" Jonas asked... and looked puzzled. 

"YOU DARE TO ASK!?!." Leilee yelled and crossed her arms. 

**Admiral**


	14. Reality Bites-Part 14

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. There is no money being made off of this story.

Reality Bites--part 14 

Maria sighed as she rubbed her throat. The battle was hard on her and the other Caras. They were lucky that the X-Men had frightened them off. 

Jonas was lying on the ground. "You worried us." Maria spoke up. 

"You attacked Ryan!" Leilee yelled out. 

"I better go." Maria said as she turned invisible again. "I'll go and see how's the others going. I heard we got a couple of new members." 

**Maria Cline**

Logan and Jamar were headed down to the medlab when Logan heard Leilee yell at Jonas./ What is Jonas doing outside?/ He thought. He turned to Jamar and said,"Jonas is outside. It might be bad. You wanna help?" 

"Yeah. He's probably upset about Sammi. Let's go." Jamar said as they headed out the door. 

They got to the forest and saw Leilee about to attack Jonas who was still on the ground in shock. 

"What's going on?" Logan asked as Jamar helped Jonas up. 

"HE ATTACKED RYAN!!" Leilee yelled at Logan. 

"Don't yell, kid. I'm standing right here. And from what I hear this Ryan was the red dragon. And if she was then SHE attacked first, the other day and after she delt with Jonas she moved on to Sammi. So today when she showed up, He was protecting, not attacking." Logan said looking right at Leilee. Leilee just stood there opened mouth. 

"You don't have anything to say about that do you? He was protecting his territory, and not just Sammi. Us, You and the house. So if your going to yell at him, do it later. Because right now he has to be in the Medlab in case Sammi wakes up." 

**jubilee_79**

Leilee turned bright red as her eyes filled with tears. "DAMNIT JONAS! When you threw your DAMN hissy fit, you hit the wall, and you destroyed the Danger Room controls! I had that F***ing b***h Mystique locked in there under special code! But since you destroyed the f***ing controls, The doors opened and she GOT OUT!!!!I actually caught her by MYSELF when she was in SABRETOOTH'S FORM! I was scared $#!+less. She was going to KILL ME! But I captured her and we could have found out what the bad guys PLAN WAS!" The tears were pouring down her face as she turned and ran off towards the Mansion. 

Remy turned to go after her as the others stayed, staring either after her or at him. 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria walked in and fell asleep on the corner of the couch. Teb and Angelo walked in and sat down and turned on the tv. The tv woke up Maria, who had turned herself invisible. she figured this girl with Ange was one of the new visitor. she made herself visible. 

"Hi." 

"WHAT THE FU**" Teb screamed and jumped up. 

"Oh, sorry bout that, I forgot I made myself invisible." 

Teb stood there with her mouth wide open. she looked at Angelo who was laughing at her. She made a mental note that she would have to get him back for that. Teb sat back down and introduced herself. She hated being so polite with everyone. That's why she never leaves Angelo's side, he's the only one she really connects with here. 

/And he's cute, too./ she though with a grin. 

"What are you smiling about chica?" Ange asked and snapped Teb back into reality. 

"Uhhh... nothing..." she said and blushed. 

Maria smiled a knowing smile. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

By this time, Leilee was stuffing shirts, shorts, pants, blanket and other necessities into a bag. Next to her was another bag filled with food and supplies for someone who was going to be away from civilization for a while. Tears were running down her face and she felt like she was going to hit something. Or someone. She had to get out. She picked up her bags, unlocked the door, and walked right into Remy's chest. 

"Excuse me, she muttered, trying to step around him. 

"Non, chere. I can't do that." 

"Fine." She turned and walked back into her room, locking the door behind her. 

As she settled on the bed, the door opened and Remy walked in. "WE have to talk." 

**Leilee**

Remy strode over to the side of the bed; his red eyes flashing angrily as he looked down at her...Leilee had never seen him so angry. It was making her angry. She opened her mouth to speak, to tell him to take a hike, but he put a finger to her lips to silence her. 

"I know you're hurt, angry, and afraid, but this isn't just about you, you're not in this alone...there are ten other people out there who are in the very same boat that you are...lost, alone, angry, hurt and afraid; just trying to make it in a world where no-one knows the rules." Gambit said, sharply. 

Then his eyes softened. 

"Running away when things are bad, doesn't help... it just makes it harder to go back... harder to face what your running from. Stay and face the pain. Don't let it chase you away. Stay here and face it with me... I am always here for you... don't run from me." 

**Rainfall**

Leilee stared at him. Most people would leave her the hell alone in this state, because she had a tendency to throw things, but dammit, he was just too cute to hit. 

"I wasn't running away. I was.....separating myself from the others for their own safety. I was NOT pouting." 

Remy just looked at her. 

She sighed. "Ok. I was pouting. I do it when I get upset." 

Remy still stared at her. 

"You want me to explain myself, don't you?" 

Remy nodded. 

Leilee rolled her eyes. "Ok. I'll spill. I didn't mean to go atom bomb on Jonas, I was just really upset, you know? I mean, I'm nearly killed by tall blonde and smelly, I don't sleep all night, because I keep seeing him when I close my eyes, then, I see you in the hallway, but it turns out it's not you, it's Mystique, and I confront her, and she turns into HIM, and tries to kill me, and I actually knock her out and capture her, only to have Jonas let her out in a tantrum and I know it was an accident, but It just pisses me off, and I'm not making any sense, Am I?" 

Remy smiled. "It's ok, chere," he murmured as he kissed her forehead. 

"I guess It's time for me to go apologize, right?" 

"That's a start, petite. That's a start." 

As the two walked out, Leilee said, "You realize when you get really mad, you don't speak in the third person anymore, right?" 

**Leilee**

As Leilee said that, Gambit just smiled, and linked arms with her...they walked down the hallway arm in arm. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Rogue and Beast helped Jonas back inside to the medlab. Jonas's dragon healing factor was doing a better job of healing Jonas than anything Beast could give him; Beast decided to leave Jonas unhooked from the I.V., but he cautioned Jonas to stay in bed for another day. 

Jonas laid back in bed, and closed his eyes; relieved that he didn't have to face anymore needles...he would've thrown everyone out of the room if they had tried that again. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After the battle, the four Caras that were outside had merged into one Cara... but was still seperate from the Cara in the medlab. When Jonas threw his temper tantrum, the inside Cara followed him... and met up with the Cara who was outside... they merged back into one Cara. 

After Beast and Rogue helped Jonas inside, Cara took Athena by the arm and led her inside to the kitchen... they both had bumps on the back of their heads the size of goose-eggs from being slammed into the wall by Sabertooth; Cara was feeling absolutely lousy. 

Athena sat down at the kitchen table, watching Cara as she worked. Cara fixed up a couple of ice sacks and handed one to Athena, then she got the bottle of aspirin and a couple of glasses of water. Then she sat down at the table. 

"Okay...our conversation about the party got interrupted by Sabertooth...let's pick up where we left off." Cara said as she opened the bottle of aspirin. 

~All available X-Men and....others, please report to the war room immediately for debriefing.~ the Professor sent a telepathic message on the mind link. 

Both Cara and Athena groaned, threw the aspirin into their mouths and took off at a run. 

**Rainfall**

Teb and Angelo groaned. Those lazy bums. 

"Aw, come on guys, maybe it's good news." Maria said and jumped up. 

Teb and Angelo dragged themselves after Maria to the war room. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The Professor sat in his hover chair, looking around at the newly rebuilt war room. It hadn't taken very long to rebuild... they'd had a lot of practice. 

As the members of both teams began to trickle in, the Professor moved his hover chair to the head of the round table. Amanda walked in; neither she nor the Professor could look at one another. They just sort of looked at everything else but each other. 

/This is going to be a rather trying meeting.../ they both thought to themselves. They both kept their minds closed to one another as well. 

When the last of the members from both teams that could still walk arrived, the Professor looked around at the inhabitants of the room. 

"First order of business," the Professor said, "The danger room controls have been severely damaged...all training must be done outside until we can get it repaired. Also, everyone must help clean up the grounds...they have been severely damaged as well by the battle." 

All the occupants of the room groaned...the Professor gave them a look, and everyone shut up. 

He turned to Amanda. 

"Amanda, your team handled themselves rather well during battle, but they still need a lot of work... and more discipline," he said, as he thought of Jonas's hand in Ryan's near death, and the damaged medlab. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Med Lab~_**

Jonas groaned and turned on his side, ignoring the stabbing pain. "Call me Kid again, I'll show you." 

He took a careful breath and felt more pain. "Damn, I can't even breathe right." he said and opened his eyes. 

"You get used to the pain." Logan said and rested back looking amused. 

Jonas looked up at him, rather irritated by the statement. "Pain? Been there, done that... I have felt more pain then you may think in my life." 

He rested back on to the bed. "I may not be close to your pain, but I don't need a lecture about it." 

"Was not about to give you one, Rogue told me about some of that stuff." Logan said and stood up and started to walk over to Sammi. 

"Rogue? What does she know?" Jonas asked puzzled, watching him as he walked over to Sammi. 

Logan pointed to his eye. "Ye saw the bruise on her eye, ye did that. No glove, full body contact... only for a second, but..." 

"That's why I was so damn dizzy." Jonas asked concerned. 

"Probably." Logan said and pulled a blanket up over Sammi. 

"She is really going to be alright, isn't she?" Jonas asked and pulled himself up on his elbow. 

"Yeah, Blue said so, for his sake he better be right." Logan said pulling up a chair to sit closer to Sammi. 

"Do you think we will find Creed?" Jonas asked his eyes suddenly turned serious. 

Logan looked back in to his cold eyes. "Ye plan on going one on one with him." 

Jonas rested back and closed his eyes. "No, I'm planing to kill him." he said cold. "Adamantium or not, Victor Creed is going to die for this." 

"Listen, Creed is a killer, a murdering bastard, he don't have one thing that I would let him live for. But ye don't hunt down and kill... not even him." 

Logan stood up, looking at Jonas who was still laying down eyes closed. "Yer not like Creed are you? you let Ryan live... yer no killer you could not even kill when yer instincts was telling you too, that is not weakness... THAT is a strength." 

Logan looked down at the floor. "A strength I wish I had at times." 

Jonas felt a little stupid, Logan was right he could maybe kill in self-defense, but in cold blood, no. 

**Admiral**

**_~War Room~_**

"Discipline?" Maria asked in confusion. 

"Yes. All of you still need to work with your powers." Xavier said calmly. "I noticed what you did in the battle. Trying to combat a group of mutants by yourself is courageous but very impulsive." 

"I had to do what I had to do." Maria replied, "Besides, my invisibility could protect me." 

"Sabertooth could've mauled you in a second. Even with the sonic scream." Scott said, "You should've wait for the others." 

"Yes sir." Maria said as she looked down in shame. She began to turn transparent as she faded away. 

"Are you still there?" Amanda asked as she waved her hand over Maria's seat. 

"Yeah. Go on." 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jamar walked into the medlab. He saw Logan and Jonas and asked,"Is she up yet?" 

"No, and probably not for a few more hours." Logan said as he walked over to him. Jamar sat down in the chair and looked at the IV that ran into her hand and said,"She's not going to like that you know. She hates needles." 

"So do I." Jonas said as he walked over to where Jamar and Logan were. "When I first got here and Hank wanted a blood sample, I freaked. Then She dropped in and landed on Hank. She bought me sometime, but not enough. When Hank said he wouldn't let me leave without one, she said she had a way to kinda get over my fear." Jonas sat down in another chair and continued, "She had me watch her eyes and then she flashed me."Jonas chuckled at the memory. 

"She what? That's it, she's grounded." Logan said looking at Sammi. 

"Don't be mad at her, Logan. She did the same thing for me when we were kids. She uses the element of surprise a lot." Jamar said. 

Jonas picked up her hand and held it his and said," I know." He felt a gentle and weak squeeze from her hand. " I think she waking up. She just squeezed my hand. 

Logan looked up at her closed eyes and saw movement under her lids, and then they slowly opened. 

"You all really need to learn about volume control." Sammi said as she blinked her eyes. 

Logan started laughing. "If your the teacher, can Jubilee join the class?" 

"Not a good idea. I might throw her in the lake again." Sammi said with a half smile. 

Jonas got up and leaned over her and said, "Promise me you won't do that again." 

"I'll try." Sammi said with a half smile again. 

"I guess I can work with that." Jons said as he leaned down and kissed her. When He got up she said," Tell me the good news. Someone finally got Creed declawed." 

"'Fraid not, darlin'." Logan said with a smile. He was happy she seemed back to her old self. 

"Shoot." She said,"What about the others are they OK?" 

"Yeah. They're fine. And I think you need more rest. I do, too." Jonas said as he got up on the bed next to her. 

"We're going to get something to eat. We'll bring something down later for you two. Come on Jamar." Logan said as he left. 

Jamar got up and started walking towards the door and turned around and said,"I've been quiet til now. If you ever do that again, I'll kill you personally. Got that, sis?" 

"Sure. Fine. Whatever you say big brother." Sammi said sarcastically. 

Jamar turned and followed Logan upstairs. When they were out of earshot Sammi asked," How are you, really?" 

"I freaked a little when I woke up but I'm great now that you up. I was worried. I was afraid I was going to loose you." Jonas said turning his head towards her. 

"Good." Sammi said. 

"What do you mean "good"?" Jonas asked. 

"Now, you know how I felt when I smelled your blood for the second time. I don't know what I would do if I lost you, and that scares me." 

"I know what you mean. It scares me, too. Well, we need to get some rest or Hank is going to skin both of us." Jonas said with a smirk. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~War Room~_**

Amanda watched as Maria faded from sight, and began to grow so angry she saw red. Who did Xavier think he was? Not only have they been doing well as a team, they had to save themselves half the time because the big bad X-men hadn't been much help. Amanda's temper had reached well beyond the boiling point and almost everyone could sense it because she hadn't bothered to hide it. Maria had stopped fading and had returned to see the anger on Amanda's face. She knew it wasn't going to be pretty. 

"HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT !" exclaimed Amanda whose voice had become cold and very unlike her own. 

Charles looked stunned. He could not believe the anger he was sensing from her. She was radiating with it. He had a feeling that he had unleashed something he shouldn't have. Despite it, he had to admit she was beautiful when she was angry. 

"I cannot believe you have the nerve to berate us for doing something that any X-Man would have done. I admit we don't have your years of experience of getting beat up, chased by Sentinels, manhandled by Magneto, and having our house be blown up more times then the Bulls win the championship, but we know how to save our friends. We handled the situation the same way any of you would have. I mean it isn't like any of you think about what could happen before you try to rescue anyone. I mean it was your bright idea to wipe Magneto's mind. Look what came about from that lovely decision, Onslaught!" 

Charles faced had gone pale right from the mention of it. He felt shocked that she knew about it. What else did she know? His confusion started to fade, being replaced by his own anger. She had no idea what she was talking about. The X-men were only trying to help them. 

"Really, Xavier. How many of my people have been hurt? Where was the help then? We protected ourselves, our friends, and your X-men. So don't get angry or superior to me. And don't you dare insult my team again or I'll show you what it feels like to have someone erase your mind, because anything you could do I can do better." 

With that Amanda left the room leaving awake of silence in the house. 

**A.C.**

Teb and Angelo looked at each other. 

"Whoa..." Teb said sarcastically, "I like her." she smiled. 

Xavier glared at her. 

"Heh...heh...hmpf..." 

"You may go." said Xavier. 

Teb hightailed it outta the room, Xavier gave her the creeps. 

"Chica, wait up, where are you going?" 

"I was going to change clothes. These are all dirty from cleaning in." 

"Ok chica, I'll see you later." 

Teb showered and got dressed, she put on some more of Anges baggy pants, but this time she opted for a wife beater. it was a nice day. she walked down the stairs and jumped over the back of the couch onto Ange's legs. 

"Ouch, why hello chica.....whoa chick!" 

"What?" 

"Nada." 

"Whatever." Teb said and pulled her red hair into a pony tail and watched tv with Angelo. 

The two watched a re-run of Punky Brewster and then Charles in Charge and fell asleep. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After the debriefing, Cara stayed behind to talk to Xavier. 

"Professor?" she asked tentatively. 

Xavier looked up from what he was doing...and looked at Cara with slight irritation on his face. Cara gulped; she knew this was bad timing, but she had to do it anyway. 

"Professor, I know this is bad timing, but I need to ask you...could we have a party?" Cara asked nervously. 

The Professor raised his eyebrows in surprise. 

Cara went on, before Xavier could say anything. 

"There really wasn't a better time to ask you, after all, we've had a battle every other day since we got here... but that's kind of usual for the X-Men, and you all still get out once in a while, and try to relax. Everyone has been extremely stressed out lately...I think that a party would help everyone... Athena does catering, she's really good. We all could pitch in, and you wouldn't be bothered... Please Professor, May we have a party?" Cara finished... she had on her earnest puppy dog face, which few people could resist. 

Xavier was no exception... plus he was very tired, and he knew that Cara probably wouldn't let up on him until he said yes, so..... 

"Alright Cara, you may have a party..." anything else that he might have said was interrupted by a sudden shout from Cara. 

"YIPPEE!!!" she shouted, and grabbed Xavier in a bear hug... she ran out of the room leaving a very surprised and shocked Xavier behind. 

**Rainfall**

**_==Next Morning, Sabretooth's Safehouse==_**

"So, where is this wonderful breakfast you promised me." Ryan woke up feeling slightly better then she did the day before. She still didn't feel like running a marathon but that was left for another time. Ryan tried to get up to see what Victor was doing but fell back to the bed in pain. 

"Don't try to get up yet frail, you're still injured pretty bad." Victor said walking over to her and fluffing the pillow for her so she would be a little more comfortable. Once again he wanted to laugh at the mental image of him being domestic. HE was making breakfast and fluffing this girl's pillow. When did he become such a wuss? 

"What are you smiling at?" Ryan teased. 

"You've turned me into a pussycat. I would never do something like this for anyone before." 

"Then my job is done here… I can go home now." 

"The hell you can. I still owe you breakfast. How does deer bladder on sourdough bread sound?" 

"Really gross." Ryan said as her face echoed the comment. 

"Good leaves more for me then. I'll make you some strawberry pancakes then." 

With that Victor got up and walked to the kitchen to begin breakfast. Once again he laughed at himself being domestic. "I don't know how long this will last but I guess I can enjoy while it's here" He murmured to himself. 

**_~Later~_**

"You mean to tell me you have never…." Ryan let the sentence trail off in disbelief. She could not believe what she was hearing. 

"Never. Why do I look like someone who would?" Victor said smiling. He had made her breakfast and had begun discussing both their pasts. 

"I just find it hard to believe. I would have thought that maybe when you were a kid you would have watched it." 

"When I was a kid Frail Scooby Doo wasn't on… and I didn't get to watch many cartoons." Victor said the last part low and Ryan barely heard it. 

"Why not?" Ryan asked him looking concerned. 

"I don't want to talk about it frail." Victor growled as a warning to lay off the subject. 

"Alright I don't need a truck to fall on me to take a hint… I get the picture. So how old are you by the way? You don't look old." Ryan said trying to change the subject. She knew that she could push Victor farther then most people but she still had to be careful around him. 

"Older then you think I am. I have a son who is older then you." 

"Gross, you pervert! What are you doing with a kid like me?" Ryan said teasing him. 

"Having a mid life crisis. What are you doing with an old fart like me?" 

"I always liked older men." 

**Le Fae**

**_

==X-Mansion==

_**

Sammi woke up. She just wasn't tired anymore and she didn't hurt that much. She looked around and saw Jonas sleeping. /I'm hungry. I need food./ She thought as she sat up, that's when she noticed the IV. /I'm gonna shave Hank for this./ She thought as she took it out. She got out of bed and walked quietly to the door. She grabbed Hank's lab coat as she walked out. Outside the door she put it on, and thought,/I hate hospital gowns./ 

She walked in to the living room and saw Angelo and Teb sleeping. She was sitting on his lap and in their sleeping stat their heads had ended up only a few inches away from each other. 

Sammi couldn't resist,"How cute." She said and woke Angelo up. He looked at her and blushed. 

Sammi nodded towards the kitchen and started to walk that way. She opened the door and said,"Mac and Cheese? Bobby must have cooked." She grabbed the bowl and took it to the counter as Angelo walked in. 

"What are you doing out of bed?" He asked as he came up to her. 

"I was hungry. Besides, I wasn't tired anymore." She said as she made herself a bowl."You want some?" 

"No I had enough before. You want some coffee, chica? I'm making." He said as he started to make the coffee. 

"Sure." 

After everything was done they sat at the table and talked. 

"So, you really like her, don't ya?" Sammi asked watching Angelo's eyes glaze over for a moment. 

"Si." 

"Then I'm going to give you some advice. Go for it. Tell her. We don't know how long we are going to be here. Carpe Diem. Got it?" Sammi said pointing her finger at him. 

"Maybe I should." Angelo said as he thought it over. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas snapped his eyes opened, breathing heavy... it had been a nightmare. 

He felt rested turned over on his side... and almost freaked "SAMMI!" 

Jonas jumped out of bed and put his hand on where Sammi had been sleeping. It was still warm. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi was sitting, drinking some of Angelo's coffee when the door slammed opened, revealing Jonas, looking a mixture of concern and anger. 

Also dressed only in his lower uniform... 

Sammi turned around. "Good morning." 

"You are supposed to be resting, remember?" Jonas said looking pleadingly at her. 

"I don't like that place, besides I feel fine." Sammi lifted her cup of coffee. "Want some?" 

Jonas sighed and dropped on a chair. "No, I don't drink Coffee... don't scare me like that please." 

Sammi only smiled and turned back to her coffee. 

"You missed the big Amanda and Xavier thing on the debriefing." Angelo said "Never heard any one talk back to baldy that way." 

"Amanda... Xavier?" Sammi and Jonas said at the same time. 

"Yep, Xavier was rather mad at that fight I figure, and the other stuff around here, guess she didn't like him hacking on you guys." 

**Admiral**

Leilee walked in, yawning. She had changed into her PJs, which consisted of some black boxers and a white tank that said, "Boys are great. Every girl should own one." She walked over to the fridge and grabbed a diet pepsi, and took a deep sip. 

"Mmmmm.....NutraSweet and Caffeine. There's nothing like it in the morning. Morning y'all" 

Sammi smiled at her as Jonas and Angelo continued their conversation. "Good morning. How was you time with Gambit?" she asked as Leilee slid into a chair. 

Leilee blushed. "Peachy. I played him at pool last night. Kicked his butt royally. Then we played blackjack for a little bit." She turned a little redder. "We fell asleep on his bed." 

"Sammi grinned, but said nothing else. Leilee, finally noticing Jonas, swallowed hard and said, "Who want's breakfast? I'll make omelettes." 

Everyone's eyes lit up at the prospect of real food. 

As Leilee started cooking, she said casually. "Jonas? Can I talk to you for a sec?" 

"Sure." 

As Leilee scrambled some eggs and added milk, she took a deep breath. "I just have to say, I'm sorry. I really flew off the handle. I was really and truly out of line. Can you hand me the salt and pepper?" 

As He passed her the spices, she smiled. "Thanks. But, I want to make it up to you. So, if you want, I'll get Remy to take Logan and Rouge to Harry's. This'll give you and her some time alone. If you want, of course." she said with a tenative smile. 

**Leilee**

Maria came into the kitchen almost grinning madly. 

"Maria?" Lielee asked, "What's that grin about?" 

"Nothing. Just have a wonderful idea on how to practice my projected invisibility." 

"Whoa!" Jonas and Angelo exclaimed as they turned red as they looked down. 

"Not like that!" Maria exclaimed making sure her voice won't shatter the glass. Scott entered the room and Maria pointed to him. "Observe." 

He was dressed in civilian clothes with his usual pair of shades on his face. The group of teens glanced at him. "What now?" he asked. 

"Just want to see something." Maria replied as she put her hand to her temple and focused. Scott's ruby quartz glasses vanished and everyone blinked in surprise. 

"Wow." Leilee muttered as they stared, "So, that's what he looks like without the shades on." 

Scott put his hand to his face to feel his glasses still there only invisible. The reddish tint was gone. He looked around and got out a mirror to stare at himself. 

"Say, he does look like Gambit without the glasses." Maria said smiling. "This is too cool." 

**Maria Cline**

**_~Mansion Grounds~_**

"Hey, Athena! He said yes to the party!!!" Cara said excitedly as she tracked Athena down... she was outside in the garden admiring Storm's flowers. 

Athena smiled...and her eyes glowed. She LOVED planning parties. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara and Athena walked into the kitchen, discussing the plans for the party. 

Sammi, Leilee, Jonas, Maria and Scott all looked over at them... 

"What Party?" they all asked at the same time. 

"Xavier said that we could have a party...Oh my heck...Scott! Where's your visor?" Cara asked, surprised to actually see Scott's eyes for once. 

"Maria made it invisible...Now, what about this party...When is it?" asked Sammi. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb woke up and first realized Angelo wasn't there. She sat up and shuffled into the kitchen where she heard voices. She went in rubbing her eyes and saw everyone sitting around drinking coffee and eating omelets. 

"TEB!" Cara exclaimed. "We're going to have a party!" 

"Ok." Teb said in shock at the very loud welcoming. She noticed Scott's goggles were gone but figured it was better not to ask in this house. She saw Ange and Jonas, and walked over to them. 

"Hey." she said and nudged Angelo to share his food. 

"Hello Chica, be so kind as to let me take you to this party?" Ange asked in a dramatic tone. 

"I'd love to." she said in a similar tone. "Hey, can we invite GenX? I sorta miss Jono." 

"Si, I miss mi amigos too." 

"The more the merrier," Cara said, she was obviously excited. 

"So," Sammi said with a wicked grin on her face, "What were you two doing that tired you out like that?" she asked Teb and Angelo. 

Angelo almost choked on his coffee and Teb who was obviously confused with the excitement in the kitchen said "Watching Punky Brewster." 

"How romantic." Sammi said under her breath to Angelo who glared at her. 

**teb**

Sammi looked up and caught the look from Angelo and decided it was time to make an exit. 

"What time is it?" 

"About 8:00. Why?" Scott asked confused because no one had asked what the time was before. 

"8 o'clock. Sorry, I have something important to do. I want to help with the party, so let me know what you need me to do." And with that Sammi was up and walking into the living room. 

She sat down and thought, /Please, let them get cartoon network here./ 

She was in luck and just in time for Sailor Moon. The theme song came on and she sang along with it,"Fighting evil by moonlight. Winning love by daylight. Never running from a real fight. She is the one named Sailor Moon." 

Jubilee came into the room, saw Sammi watching Sailor Moon and sat on the couch next to her. 

"I thought I was the only one in this house that watches this."Jubilee said singing along with Sammi. 

"Nope. I love this. Its just that my cable company back home got rid of the network so I can't watch it. I really missed it." Sammi said smiling at Jubilee."Guess what? The prof said we can have a party." 

"Alright. That is soo awesome." Jubilee said looking back at the TV. 

Sammi did the same til she heard Jonas come in. She patted the couch next to her and He sat down. He looked at the TV and then back at Sammi and Jubilee. 

"I thought you had something important to do." He said watching the cartoon. 

"Sailor Moon is important. Now be nice." Sammi said smiling and kissing him on the cheek. 

**jubilee_79**

The Sailor Moon song caught Teb's ear and she ran into the living room. 

"AHH this is even better then Punky Brewster!" Teb screamed. 

"You like it too?" Jubilee asked. 

"Heck yea, I like dragon ball z better though. I may act like a hard ass but I'm really a nerd." 

The others laughed and they watched Sailor Moon. 

**TEB**

The group was in the middle of Sailor Moon dusting off a villain with her moon wand when Amanda enter the room. The cheering group all quieted as she passed. Amanda didn't notice the stares from her group nor the X-men as she headed to the fridge to get a glass of Orange juice. In the mood she was in, everyone in a twenty mile radius would suffer the worst headache in the world if she didn't get her orange juice. Luckily there was a full carton. 

With her drink in hand, Amanda headed to her group. She noticed an empty chair and sat down. She felt the eyes of everyone focus on her then dart away when they thought she noticed. It wasn't until after the cartoon was over that someone spoke to her. 

"Amanda?" asked Cara. 

"Yes, I know about the party and I think it's a good idea. In fact I was going to suggest that you and I go get the decorations while Jonas and Sammi clear the area so we'll have room to dance. Leliee and Maria can pick the music while everyone else works on the food. Agreed?" 

Everyone nodded their heads. Amanda silently wonder if it was because they agreed with her plan or that they were afraid at what she would do if they didn't. Amanda pondered this as she went upstairs to change. 

She hadn't meant to say half the things she said, it was just that Charles had pushed the wrong buttons. She cared about her group and couldn't stand by and listen to Charles berate them. Still, she should have held her tongue especially since she realized how special he was to her. It was so typical of her to push people she cared about away. Maybe she could talk to him at the party, though he may not be to happy about the damage she had done outside. Who knew that she could create psychic weapons that could create small crators in a garden when she was upset? She really needed to control her temper. 

**A.C.**

Leilee sat up and stretched after watching Sailor Moon. "Goddess, I love that show. I have Sailor Moon posters and manga at home. I love going into Chinatown at home and getting stuff." 

The room fell silent for a minute, everyone reflecting on their family and friends left behind. Or at least, until Bobby ran in. 

"DID I hear something about a party?!" 

"Yup," said Sammi with a smile. 

"Ohmyg**, we gotta buy an outfit for the party!" said Jubilee and she jumped up. "I don't know what to wear!" 

Leilee grinned. "I have an idea. Let's do a costume party. It'll be fun especially with the Handy Dandy Sh'iar costume design kit. We'll have a prize for best costume! It'll be fun! And we can go as whoever we want!" 

**Leilee**

**_~*~Later~*~_**

Amanda and Cara had just come out of the store after getting the decorations when Cara asked her about her costume. Amanda had been informed of the idea and had thought it would be a lot of fun, for everyone else. 

"I haven't thought of one. The truth is that I don't really like costumes." confessed Amanda. 

"Don't like costumes, then what do you call what you wear when we're in battle?" Shouted Cara 

"I call it a uniform and don't talk so loud." 

"Sorry." replied Cara sheepishly. 

"I don't know what to go as." replied Amanda. 

"I know the perfect costume that will go with your dark hair and blue eyes." 

"What?" asked Amanda cautiously. 

"A genie." 

"No way are you getting me into one of those small costumes." Declared Amanda. 

"It will be great. I'll help with your hair and I'm sure the other girls will help." 

"I thought this was going to be a contest." 

"You'll be the judge, so what you wear doesn't count. I love to be creative. Besides, as our leader you have to be a good representative of us." 

"Why do I have the feeling I'm being set up for something." 

"You're not. Besides, it will be fun and we'll have the advantage because you'll favor us over the X-men. PLEASE!!!!!!!!!" 

"Don't try the puppy dog eye trick with me." 

Cara smiled she knew she had her. Now all she had to do was set the plan into motion. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb and Angelo were walking down the chip isle in the supermarket. 

Teb,"all right, lets make this short and sweet. we need 2 super party bags of regular chips, pretzels with and without salt, 2 or 3 bags of tortilla chips, bbq chips, cheese puffs, chedder pop corn, regular pop corn...." 

"Chill chica, I think that's enough variety." 

"No... now for dip." 

Ange sighed as she threw about 5 different flavors of dip into the cart, he hated shopping for food. 

"Alright, now to the veggies. We need carrots, cucumbers, celery broccoli.." 

"Chica, who's going to eat this when they have a shopping cart full of junk food?" 

"Look, there's going to be a lot of people there, many of whom are teenagers, girl teenagers, and not every girl pigs out on crap like we do." 

"Oh" sighed Angelo in defeat. 

The two got some other things they needed, soda and a few things they had on a list the other members had asked for and headed to the check out. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee slipped into her costume and inspected herself in the mirror. It fit well. Thank the goddess for all those years of dancing. If she wasn't this fit, she'd never be able to pull this costume off. And best of all, It'd make Remy swallow his tongue. All she needed was some help and an apple...... 

**Leilee**


	15. Reality Bites-Part 15

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.

**

Reality Bites--Part 15

**

**_

==Sabretooth's Safe House==

_**

"Ouch, Stop it, Uncle!" Sabertooth was pinned beneath Ryan the two of them having a playful sparring match. 

"You're mocking me?" Ryan asked knowing very well that he was letting her win. 

"What makes you say that? Maybe I just wanted to get you on top of me." Sabertooth said with a smile. 

____ 

**_~Outside the building.~_**

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Athena asked Cara doubtfully. 

"Yeah if the tracking device Beast planted on Ryan works this is where they are." Cara responded looked at the broken down building. 

"I think maybe we should have called first…. I mean Creed isn't the kind of guy you just want to drop in on." Maria said "What if Ryan isn't even there?" 

"Well the tracking device says she is here…I say we go in." Cara said with complete faith that Creed would not hurt them. The three girls entered the building. 

__ 

**_~Inside the building.~_**

"So you wanted me on top of you? Now why would you want that?" Ryan responded playfully. A knock at the door interrupted the scene and Ryan got up to answer it. 

"Hi, I hope were not interrupting anything we just wanted to make sure you're ok and wanted to invite you to a party." Cara said rather quickly eyeing the large growling man standing behind Ryan. 

Ryan smiled " Really, What kind of party?" 

"It's a costume party. I know this sounds kind of rude but you're invited and he's not." Athena said motioning to Sabertooth. "You understand though with his history." 

"Alright, what time?" 

**Le Fae**

**_

==X-Mansion==

_**

It was the night of the party, and all the girls were getting changed into their costumes. Most of them hadn't taken that long to change. Leilee, however was on the 6th hour of getting ready. Why had it taken so long? Well..... 

"Hold on one sec. Just gotta.....done!" said Ryan with a grin. "It looks great! Not bad for an abstract artist." 

Leilee inspected the snake that had been painted on her body. The tail had started on her ankle and wound up over her leg, up her hip, around her waist, up her spine to her shoulder, where the head rested. Combined with the green bikini that had been covered with shiny faux leaves, sequins and vines, she made the perfect Eve. She had left her long hair down and put on just a little makeup. In the mirror, well....it was perfect... 

**Leilee**

"Leilee you look great!" Ryan was practically glowing. She had been painting for years and nothing she ever painted looked any good, but with Leilee's help the costume looked incredible. "Oh No!" Ryan shouted. 

"What's wrong?" Leilee asked very worried. She was scared something didn't come out right. 

"I still have to get ready. I don't know what I should be! I could go as Audrey Hepburn circa Roman Holiday or Breakfast at Tiffany's? If I do Breakfast at Tiffany's should I be Audrey with the big black hat with the whit scarf on it or Audrey with the diamond tiara? Or maybe I should just go as Tinkerbell?" Ryan was panicking. She was never really good at making decisions especially when it came to what to wear. "What should I do?" 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

/Well, not bad,/ Athena thought, looking at herself in the mirror. /I really don't like costume parties, I can't believe it took me so long to decide what to wear. The Queen of Hearts, not the actual card, who would want to go around wearing a big piece of card board? Just the character, or a more modern version anyway. Certainly less clothing, I've never been the type for petticoats and hoop skirts. All the same, not bad. The only thing I regret, is that I don't have a special male to impress. I think this costume would certainly provoke more than a few "oohs" and "ahs" in a man if he cared to pay attention./ 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

While Ryan was panicking over what to wear, Cara was having her own troubles...with Amanda!!! Amanda was having second thoughts about the genie costume that Cara had picked out for her... she would not put it on!!! They had been arguing about it for almost three hours now! 

"Come on Amanda! It is really cute! The color is great for you! It goes really well with your dark hair...come on, please just try it...you'll fall in love with it, I'm sure...and if you still don't like it after you put it on, we'll try something else, okay? Please? Just try it?" Cara coaxed in her sweetest, most cajoling voice. 

Amanda took a deep breath...and held up her hands. 

"Alright! I'll try it...but I'm warning you...if I don't like it, I'm not wearing it!" Amanda said with a little bit of irritation in her voice. 

Cara smiled, and held out the costume. 

The costume consisted of a dark-blue leotard, with the midrif cut away from the front and back... long gauzy dark-blue pant legs that were kind of poofy... a dark-blue satin vest with velvet trim... and attached to the vest were dark-blue see-through gauzy long sleeves... 

Amanda grabbed the costume and hurried to the bathroom to change. There was a sudden knock at the door; Cara answered it. It was Gambit! 

"Hey Mon Petit'!" Gambit said as he smiled at the girl; but he seemed a bit flustered. 

"Hi Gambit, what's up?" said Cara. 

"Gambit is having just a little trouble with the Professor...he says he isn't coming...could you help?" Gambit said, his eyes were pleading. 

/Oh, great! If the Professor doesn't show up, my whole matchmaking scheme will be ruined!/ thought Cara. /But if I leave Amanda now, she won't go to the party either...and it will still be ruined! Well, at least I can be in two places at one time.../ She thought. 

"Alright Gambit...Just one minute..." Cara said, as she slammed a fist into the palm of her hand. Two Caras stood where one had stood before. One of the Caras grabbed Gambit by the arm, and pulled him down the corridor, while the other Cara shut the door, just as Amanda stepped out of the bathroom wearing the costume. 

"I guess it will have to do...there really isn't all that much time left to get ready...can you help me with my hair?" she asked Cara. 

Cara grinned, and went over to help Amanda with her hair. 

***** 

The other Cara and Gambit ran to the Professor's room...knocked on the door and went in. The Professor was sitting in his hover chair, looking out the window. Cara surveyed the discarded costume; a sultan's outfit with a turban, which Charles obviously hadn't liked too much. 

"Hi Professor! What's this I hear about you not wanting to go to the party?" Cara asked as she walked over to him. 

The Professor turned his hover chair around to face her; he looked at her accusingly... 

"It isn't the party that I'm objecting to...It's your plans." He said. 

Cara gasped...How had he known? 

"Gambit didn't shield his thoughts well enough," the Professor said, reading Cara's thoughts, "I am a private person, and I don't like anyone poking their noses into my business. And my feelings for Amanda are certainly none of your business." 

Cara straightened herself up to her full height, stuck out her chin, and raised her eyebrows. She looked at Gambit, then she looked back at the Professor. 

"It is true that your relationship with Amanda is none of my business...but the feelings of my friend ARE my business! She cares a great deal for you, and your snippishness and high-handed ways are hurting her! You are allowing your insecurities to ruin a good thing...running away because you feel you are getting too close. All I am trying to do is to help you, because I happen to care a great deal for both Amanda, and for yourself! All I want if for both of you to be happy, and you make each other happy...at least when you're not second guessing what you feel about each other. You need help, whether or not you admit it...So I suggest you get off of your high horse and allow US to help you!" Cara finished, her red eyes flashing angrily. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

While Athena surveyed herself in the mirror, there came a sudden knock at the door; Athena went to open it...It was Bobby! He was dressed as the king of hearts, complete with scepter. He was also grinning madly from ear to ear. 

"You look GREAT!" he said; he couldn't take his eyes off of her. 

Athena blushed and said, "Thanks, you look good too...wait a minute, the King of Hearts! Alright, who told!" 

Bobby grinned even wider and said, "Cara did, but she told me not to tell you that it was her." "Oh, Cara, I am going to get you for this..." Athena mumbled to herself, as she took Bobby's arm and allowed herself to be led to the party. 

**Rainfall**

On the way down stairs, Athena decided to clear the air about a few things. "I can't believe you are doing this, the King of Hearts. Remind me to thank Cara. I am surprised you are even talking to me. I have been just mortified about falling out of a tree and fainting. I just knew you and Hank would be so offended." 

Bobby just smiled and said, "It's o-kay, it's not like you fell into somebody's bath tub." 

Athena, stopped dead in her tracks and said, "That would have been terrible, I would have been the first person to ever actually die from embarrassment." Then she added, "You know, the funny thing is I really wasn't scared. It's just...no never mind, I can't say it." 

"Come on," Bobby prodded. 

"O-kay," Athena finally said, after a moments more hesitation. "My best friend has a three year old son, Amos. When she has plans to go out, I babysit. Amos loves Sesame Street. I have to watch it with him all the time. Right before I blacked out all I could think, was that I must have died. And wouldn't my minister be interested to know that God looks like Cookie Monster!" 

"Hank would get a laugh out of this, but don't tell him. It might over inflate his ego if he knew you thought he was God." Bobby said laughing. "Hey, if Hank was God, who did you think I was?" 

"Actually," Athena said looking down at her feet, "I thought maybe St. Peter." 

This sent Bobby into fits of laughter. "If anyone around here knew you thought I was a saint, they would commit you," he finally managed to say. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Xavier's eyes widened in shock...then just as suddenly, narrowed in anger. A red tint rose in his cheeks. Gambit gulped. 

"Gambit's got to finish getting ready petit', he's got to pick up Leilee soon..." Gambit stammered, as he backed up to the doorway. He turned, and exited the room quickly. 

Cara stood her ground...her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were still flashing angrily. The Professor moved his hoverchair over to Cara, until he was face to face with her... both of them staring angrily and stubbornly into each other's eyes. They stayed there for several seconds, just staring... Cara was the first to look away. 

Cara walked over to the window, took a deep breath, and turned back to face Xavier. Her eyes were no longer flashing, they just seemed to have a sad expression in them. 

"I know I was out of line...your relationship with Amanda was no business of mine. I admit it...I went overboard. It's just that, back home, I saw a lot of people have something good going, and then they let insecurities or grudges get in the way; they parted ways and didn't realize what they had until it was too late. I didn't want that for the two of you. You have the kind of love for each other that most people only dream about. And, I've got this nagging feeling that we won't be here much longer... if you don't grab it while it's here, if you don't tell Amanda how you feel, you may never have the chance again." Cara said, earnestly and openly, no trace of her usual coaxing. If Xavier was to choose this, Cara wanted him to choose it on his own volition; without any coaxing or prodding. Cara waited in silence. 

Xavier closed his eyes and put one hand to his forehead. He took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. What Cara had said made him think... he too felt that something was about to happen, and that he may never have this chance with Amanda again. He opened his eyes and looked thoughtfully at Cara. 

"Alright, Cara. I will go through with it, on one condition...the next time you plan anything like this, ask me first?" the Professor said, with the faintest of smiles on his lips. He didn't want to encourage her TOO much... 

Of course, Cara didn't really need encouraging...her eyes sparkled, and she grinned. She immediately ran over to the sultan costume and picked it up. 

"Oh no...I am NOT wearing that." Charles said sternly. 

"Oh, come on Professor, you'll look really cute in it...come on, just try it on...if you don't like it, you can always wear something else... please, just try it?" Cara said in her sweetest most cajoling voice. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Back in Amanda's room, the other Cara had just finished fixing Amanda's hair...she had put it in a long twisted ponytail braid on the top of Amanda's head. Then she went to work on the makeup...just a little bit. After she was through, she attached the dark-blue see-through veil over Amanda's face...it covered the lower part of Amanda's face; Only Amanda's blue eyes showed. Cara had put glittering eyeshadow on Amanda's eyelids so they would stand out more. After she was through, Cara pulled out a shoe box; inside was a pair of dark-blue satin slippers, with the toes partially curled up. 

"I forgot to hand these to you earlier," Cara explained as Amanda put them on. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Leilee descended the steps in a graceful gait. Standing next to her was a perfect replica of Audrey Hepburn, right down to tiara nestled in her think mass of hair. 

"You look great, Ryan." 

Ryan grinned back. "Thanks. Hold on a sec. You need something." She ran quickly into the kitchen and brought out the final touch to the costume. 

Leilee squealed. "Bangin'! It's perfect." She accepted the object and held it as she walked into the party room. 

Bobby and Athena were sitting in a corner, chatting amicably. ::Good. Now I wont have to hurt him.:: thought Leilee as she searched the room for her.....boyfriend, she guessed she'd call him. As she turned towards the door, she saw Gambit standing at the doorway staring in shock. Leilee grinned and walked over to him, holding up the apple. 

"Want a bite?" 

**Leilee**

Ryan looked down at her feet nervously. Suddenly she wasn't sure if she should have come. She started at the room full of people and spotted Sammi and Jonas, the two people who Victor tried to kill not to long ago. Standing next to them was Logan and a man Ryan didn't recognize. She really felt awkward being at a party with people who probably hated her. 

"This isn't going to be good." Ryan said as she proceeded to walk down the rest of the steps and headed to the bar. /I need a drink,/ she thought to herself and clutching her long black cigarette holder like it was a security blanket. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Logan watched Ryan cross the room to the bar carefully. He was still wary of the girl and did not trust her at all. Anyone who thought Victor Creed was a good person was obviously crazy. Logan didn't want anyone close to him getting hurt because of this girl. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

"Hey, Bobby," Athena said. "How do you feel about giving people the benefit of the doubt?" 

"Sure," was all he said. He was surprised by the sudden change of subject. 

"You see that girl, 'Audrey Hepburn', her name is Ryan and I think she needs a friend." 

He looked skeptical, personally he thought Ryan looked like she wanted to be left alone. Sensing Bobby's hesitation, Athena began tugging on his arm. 

"Pleeeeeease Bobby-bear," she cooed in his ear, and gave him her sweetest most innocent look. It worked. 

"All right, she can't be all that bad if you like her," he smiled. "Bobby-bear huh? Just don't let anyone else hear that o-kay?" He warned playfully. 

Athena just smiled and continued to lead him to the bar and Ryan. "Really, Bobby, you'll like her. She's my friend." 

"Hi, Ryan," Athena smiled. "I'm so glad you're hear. We were just going for a walk in the garden, would you like to come? By the way, have you met my...uh Bobby?" 

**snowbaby**

"Bobby Drake right?? Yeah my ex-boyfriend really hated you as a character… so that makes you number one in my book." Ryan said shaking Bobby's hand. 

"Thanks, I think. " Bobby said looking at Athena for help. 

"I'm sorry I'm not trying to be mean or anything it's just I don't like my ex..... A walk in the garden sounds fairly romantic. I don't think I should intrude." Ryan said smiling at the couple. They look really cute together she thought to herself. 

**Le Fae**

"Romantic?" Athena suddenly blushed. She hadn't thought of that. "Well, we don't have to walk in the garden. What would you like to do?" 

**snowbaby**

Ryan smiled at Athena "I don't want to ruin your romantic evening. Really it's cool with me. I am going to be here a while and trust me I am much more fun when I am drunk. So you guys have a romantic walk in the garden and I'm going to make this bartender my best friend. When you come back I will be smashed enough that you guys can get me to do anything you want." 

Ryan was trying to be sarcastic and funny. She could tell that Athena was torn between hanging around with her and spending sometime alone with Bobby. 

Athena looked concerned at Ryan. She was trying to figure out if Ryan was serious about the getting smashed part or if she was just joking. 

**_

~Leilee and Gambit~

_**

"Wait, hold on Chere. Gambit have to pull his tongue back in his mouth. You make it hard to be suave, charming, cool and collected when you looked dat beautiful chere. Gambit tink dat paradise only half as beautiful as you Chere." Gambit was shocked at the sight before him and was amazed that someone this beautiful would want to be with him. 

**Le Fae**

Leilee smiled at the cajun's flattery. "You're sweet." 

Remy grinned back. "Remy tries, Petite." 

Leilee's smile faltered slightly as she looked into his eyes. "I need to talk to you. Can we go somewhere a little more quiet?" 

Remy nodded, noticing the seriousness in her eyes. "Come on." He took her hand in his and led her into the garden. As they reached the bench, Remy sat as Leilee paced in front of him. 

"I need to ask you something, and it's a little personal, but it's important to me." 

Remy watched her pace, feeling a little apprehensive. "Allons-y, petite. You can ask me anything." 

She stopped in front of him and looked into his eyes. "What's going on between you and Rogue?" 

Remy looked a little surprised, but she continued on. 

"I know this may seem a little weird, but you have to understand something. I was very shy back home. Especially around guys. My last boyfriend dated me to make his girlfriend jealous. Then he told me that I wasn't pretty enough to ever get a boy any other way. And I just want to know if you really like me or if you really like Rouge, and I'm just a substitute...Because I don't want to get hurt anymore." She finished her speech in a whisper as tears filled her eyes. She sniffed a little and looked up into his glowing red eyes. "So, do you really like me? Or am I a convenient substitute?" 

**Leilee**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb and Angelo finally made it to the party. Teb was dressed in what Angelo was dressed in earlier and Angelo was dressed in what she was earlier. Sammi and Jonas were there dressed as a witch and a warlock. Their costumes were really elaborate. 

"What? You guys didn't dress up?" Sammi asked. 

Teb smirked "I'm Ange, and he's me." 

Ange smiled and agreed. Sammi laughed,those two were so cute together. 

The doorbell rang and Teb ran to get it. Gen X walked in all dressed and ready to party. 

"Jono!" Teb yelled and gave him a hug. "Glad you came." 

He was dressed like a guy from the movie The Matrix. It really suited him. 

~Shouldn't you be dressed up?~ he asked her. 

"Si, she is." said Angelo answering for her and slipping his arm around her shoulder. "She is me and I am her." 

~oohhh..~ said Jono, taking the hint Ange was giving him, ~Well, nice to see you guys again.~ 

Ange smiled and squeezed Teb's shoulder tighter. Teb was at a loss. She felt like she was being paraded around the members of Gen X, and she didn't mind at all. 

**teb**

**_

~Gambit and Leilee~

_**

Gambit leapt up from where he was sitting, and was by her side in a flash. He gripped her shoulders firmly and looked deep into her eyes. 

"Chere, Gambit t'ink you are beautiful. More important dan dat, you have a beautiful soul. Don't ever let anyone tell you differently, don't ever believe Gambit t'ink differently. Dat boy had no right to say doze t'ings Chere, non. He was a blind fool." He hoped that despite the red glow of his eyes, she would see the sincerity in them. He suddenly grabbed her in a fierce embrace and tenderly, said, "Gambit never let you go Chere." 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena smiled, and gave Ryan a hug. 

"You know, you really aren't so bad as you think. Some people around here really do like you. You were my first friend here." Athena confided, as she hugged Ryan again. "Now, I'm going to spend sometime with Bobby, and if you change your mind about joining us, we'll be in the garden. Otherwise, we won't stay gone long. I don't want to leave you here by yourself. Maria should be along any minute, and you know she likes you." 

Athena slowly started walking to the door, led by Bobby. Then called back over her shoulder, "Drink as much as you want, just don't drink all the vodka. I expect to be able to have a nice cold metropolitan when I get back." She winked jokingly at Ryan and walked outside with Bobby. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena and Bobby walked out into the warm June night. It was a beautiful night. Then something caught her attention, it was the sound of voices. They seemed to be coming from around the other corner. Athena recognized the voices as belonging to Remy and Leilee. She guessed they were out here for the same reason she and Bobby were. Not wanting to intrude or eavesdrop, Athena and Bobby quickly strolled in the opposite direction. They had plans of their own anyway. 

Silently, they made their way across the lawn and down to the lake. They sat down near the waters edge, and Athena rested her head on Bobby's shoulder. She thought to herself, that she would be content to just stay in this spot for the rest of her life. 

**snowbaby**

Bobby and Athena sat by the lake neither saying a word for a long moment. Both of them just content to be in each other's company not wanting the moment to end. Bobby had wanted to ask Athena out since he first met her but felt he didn't have a chance. Now as he sat with her by the lake he thought what a fool he had been. He had wasted so much time already and he honestly didn't know how much longer she would be with him. Suddenly a stab of pain went through his heart. She was going to be leaving him and he would be alone again. 

"Penny for your thoughts?" Athena asked looking into Bobby's beautiful eyes. I could get lost in those eyes, she thought. 

"I just suddenly realized that you can't stay forever. Sooner or later you're going to have to go home. I'm going to miss you." 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi, Jonas and Jamar were talking quietly to each other. 

"Now, remember the plan...when Cara gives us the signal..." the rest of what Sammi said was in small whispers. 

Jamar adjusted his mask so he could see better; he was dressed as the Lone Ranger. 

**_

~Amanda and Maria's Room~

_**

Maria ran in rather breathless; she had been out shopping for her costume...it was a last minute thing. 

"Hi Amanda, hi Cara! You look nice Amanda! Sorry I can't talk now, I've got to change!" Maria said as she ran into the bathroom with her shopping bags. 

Amanda and Cara just looked at each other and started laughing. 

"Maria is beginning to act like you, Cara!" laughed Amanda. 

Cara grinned, then looked down at her clothes... 

"AACK!!! I'VE got to go get changed!!! I'll be back in a few minutes!" Cara said as she ran out of the room. 

**_

~Xavier's Room~

_**

"Okay...so you didn't like the sultan outfit..." the other Cara said as Xavier came out of the bathroom with the discarded costume, "Well, how about this?" she said, as she held up another costume... it was black, and had a cape, a mask, and a sword. 

Xavier took it from Cara, gave her a look, and said, "Cara...wouldn't a regular tuxedo suffice?" 

Cara shook her head adamantly...Xavier sighed, and went back into the bathroom to change. 

Ten minutes later, Xavier came out of the bathroom...dressed as Zorro! 

**_

~Cara and Leilee's Room~

_**

Cara ran into the room, grabbed her costume, and ran into the bathroom. Ten minutes later, she came out dressed in a Wonder Woman costume, complete with cape and lasso. 

"Alright, time to get Amanda to the party...the matchmaking plan of the century is about to go into effect!" Cara said as she smiled, and walked out the door. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~The Party~

_**

Logan excused himself from Sammi's company and walked over to the bar. Ryan saw him coming and tensed up immediately. Victor had told her to stay away from him and to watch her back. She knew he was just being paranoid so she was not tense over the thought of Logan hurting her. She was tense over the thought of him telling her off. Ryan hated to be yelled at. When Logan got to the bar he ordered himself a beer and looked toward Ryan. 

"You smell like Creed." He stated rather bluntly. "Look I don't want to cause trouble with you girlie but I want you to know that if you cause any of my friends harm I will cause you harm. " "Look I don't want to hurt anyone. I'm not here to cause trouble, I'm just here to have a good time." 

**Le Fae**

**_

~Amanda and Maria's Room~

_**

Maria looked at herself in the mirror...she smiled, satisfied with her appearance. Then, she turned herself invisible, and walked out of the bathroom. 

Amanda was sitting on her bed, playing with her veil...she didn't feel like going for some reason. She looked up when the bathroom door opened. 

"Hi Maria...why are you invisible?" she asked, surprised at her friend. 

Maria smiled to herself. "You'll see at the party...I feel like being a little mysterious right at the moment...see you later!" she said, as she went out the door. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Maria walked into the ballroom, still invisible. She surveyed her surroundings; she didn't see Leilee, Gambit, Bobby or Athena anywhere...what she did see however, was Ryan being bullied by Wolverine...at least, that's what it looked like to her. She got mad, and walked up to the two of them, still invisible. 

"Excuse me, Wolverine? I would appreciate it if you didn't upset my friend...she is here as my, Cara and Athena's guest." she said, with as much control over her voice and emotions as she could manage. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Monet, as usual, was glaring at Teb. Paige was clinging all over Jono and Jubilee was trying to get Ev's attention. Teb and Angelo were attacking the music. They wanted something fun. Teb knew just the thing 

"ALRIGHT YOU GUYS!" Teb yelled as the song started, "JUMP AROUND!" 

House of Pain's Jump Around started to play EXTREMELY LOUDLY!!! Teb was jumping up and down singing, she knew all the words. Angelo looked like he was going to fall down laughing. 

"Pack it up pack it in, let me begin. I came to win, bother me that's sin...." Teb sang right in Monet's face, trying to annoy her. "Freak it, funk it, amps in a trunk, and I got more rhymes then the cops at a Dunkin Donuts shop..." she continued and started to get the others to dance to the song as well. "I came to get down, I came to get down, so get out your seat and jump around.... jump around... jump up jump up and get down JUMP JUMP JUMP..." she sang loud and jumped up and down and made a ruckus. 

**teb**

**_

~Athena and Bobby~

_**

Athena thought her heart would break in two. She had such bad luck with men. Most seemed only interested in her money. The only other time she had really cared about one, he had been violent and abusive. She had a successful career, but nobody special. Her family might as well be non-existent for all the time they spent with her. She hadn't spoken to them since she was sixteen. Bobby and this place, these people were the first good things to happen to her in years. 

"I don't want to leave you, Bobby." Athena said timidly. "I'm just so afraid that it's a decision that won't be up to me. I have a feeling our being here is some sort of mistake, and someone is going to fix it. If that happens, whether I stay or have to go, just remember this moment. Remember I love you, and where ever I am I'll still be loving you." 

She hugged him tightly to her. Wishing it would last forever, but knowing it couldn't. "I hate to end this, but I feel horribly guilty about leaving Ryan. I was one of the people who invited her. Maybe we should go check on her? I would also like to introduce her to Teb and Gen-X. I think they would get along smashingly, and it might make her feel better to have more friends here." 

**snowbaby**

**_

~Leilee and Gambit~

_**

Leilee hugged Remy back tightly, breathing in the scent that screamed his name in her head. It was a mixture of his cologne, cigarette smoke, and him that she could pick out anywhere. The tears were absorbed by Remy's white teeshirt. She smiled and moved back a bit, smiling up at him. 

"You know, if I'm not careful, I could seriously fall for you." 

Remy grinned back at her and kissed her softly, allowing her to come up for air only when she was breathless and trembling. 

"That be the plan, cherie. That be the plan." 

**Leilee**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena and Bobby made their way, hand in hand, back to the ballroom. Once inside, they spotted Ryan by the bar with Logan. They seemed to be talking to the wall. Athena decided, either they were both really drunk or Maria was there. She decided Maria was a better bet. Bobby wrapped his arm around her waist and they walked over to the bar. 

"Hey there, yall," Athena said in her warmest southern belle voice. She had hoped to put them at ease. She could tell by the looks on Logan and Ryan things were tense. She couldn't see Maria, but she could almost swear she felt Maria's agitation. 

"I hope we didn't miss anything," Bobby said trying to break the awkward silence. 

"Maria, Logan, I hope y'all don't mind, but I really have to steal Ryan for a teensy little bit," Athena said in her most syrupy sweet voice. She had always been told when trouble arose to 'kill them with kindness'. To Ryan she added, "There are some people you just have to meet. I know you'll love them." 

She then grabbed hold of Ryan's hand and drug her across the room to where Teb and Angelo where, Bobby still holding on around her waist. 

As she approached, she said, "Teb, Angelo, I don't think you have met my friend Ryan. Ryan, this is Teb and Angelo, two of the most fascinatingly interesting people you will ever meet." 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jonas was not really enjoying himself, and he could feel that Sammi was bothered by the same thing, Ryan... 

His suppressed Dragon instinct was screaming at him, frightening him... this was his enemy, his pray that had not yet fallen by his jaws. 

He shook the thought away, when Athena was dragging Bobby over to Ryan and started to drag her over to the gathering of Gen X, his fist tightened. 

Jonas always had problems holding a grudge and this person had once tried to kill his beloved, and her *friend* Creed almost succeeded. 

At the same time he was angry with himself for what he did to her, he almost killed *her*. 

"How can they fuss around with that nutcase." He said low, forgetting he was speaking. 

Sammi looked at him, his face was so angry... so hurt. 

**Admiral**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena and Bobby quickly headed back to their little corner, after making introductions. She just couldn't help wanting time alone with him. She was distracted by the way Jonas was glaring at Ryan. She had felt his anger as they walked across the room. She felt sorry for Ryan and Jonas. Both of them obviously hurting. Still she couldn't help but be a little annoyed. Most all the X-Men had done things they weren't proud of at sometime or another. Certainly, Jonas had to have made mistakes in the past, too. Still no one was holding past mistakes against any of them. 

/If they were, we would all be in trouble,/ she thought to herself. 

Ryan and Jonas had both acted out of fear and anger, certainly both had acted rashly. Sammi had survived, as had Ryan. Sure they could not be expected to be friends, but at least civil. Truly, they are both even. Creed had nearly killed Sammi, and Jonas had done just as much damage to Ryan. They had both inflicted pain, why couldn't they let it go? Obviously, Ryan was making an effort. 

She didn't have to come. She chose to. That in itself had to be considered trying to mend things. It could not be easy for her to face the people, so rudely staring at her. Yet here she was. Ryan wasn't a bad person at heart. She had certainly been more friendly and welcoming to Athena than the 'so called good guys' had at first. Athena shuddered at the thought of how terribly isolated Ryan must feel, and tightened her grip on Bobby. She was thankful to have him here to keep her from feeling isolated. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan smiled at the young couple standing before her. They seemed to have so much in common and Angelo seemed so respectful of Teb. The only people who ever gave Ryan respect were in this house. Except of course for Victor but she didn't feel right even thinking his name in this house. These people hated him so much. 

"So how long have you two known each other?" Ryan asked trying to make small talk. 

"Not too long" Teb said eyeing the girl, she had heard about her involvement with Victor Creed and wasn't sure if she like the girl yet. 

"That's cool… so what did you do for fun before you came here?" 

**Le Fae**

Suddenly, Remy and Leilee walked into the room. He had his arm wrapped tightly around her waist and she was smiling happily. 

"Hey isn't it time for the fashion contest?" Asked Leilee. "Amanda! Get down here so we can start!" 

**Leilee**


	16. Reality Bites-Part 16

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.

**

Reality Bites--Part 16

**

Teb smiled. Someone actually cared about what she did? Her parents never cared. The baby with two successful big brothers. Sixteen, still no job, a tom boy, bad grades...she was not good enough for her parents and so she was ignored. They gave her money and food and let her go it alone. 

For a kid in NYC, it didn't take long for Teb to start hanging with the bad boys. Though they weren't bad boys really, society pegged them as the bad boys. She couldn't help but feel sad as she remembered her friends, her family, in her graffiti crew. They made art together every night of the week. She hadn't painted at all in this new world, but with Angelo here, it hadn't been that bad. 

She hadn't talked about her life yet in the time she'd been here, maybe a bit with Angelo. She felt she had a second chance here. These people weren't judgmental and they accepted her with open arms. Teb loved that chance to meet different people. 

Teb was about to answer Ryan, but she was interrupted by Leilee. 

"Cmon you guys! MARIA!!!" Leilee yelled. 

**TEB**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi put her hand on Jonas's shoulder and said," I don't know why she is here but I'm going to find out." She kissed him on the cheek and walked over to Cara and Amanda who were coming out of the house. 

"You guys look great. Can I talk to Cara for a second? I need to ask her something."Sammi said. 

Cara thinking it was about the plan said,"Sure. Amanda, Leilee is starting the contest so why don't you go and we'll catch up." 

"Ok." Amanda said as she left. 

When Sammi knew she was out of ear shot, said,"I have two questions to ask you. One, Is everything ready for the plan? And, two, Why is Ryan here?" 

Cara was shocked by the second question, but then she thought about it and realized no one told her or Jonas about what Ryan did in the medlab. 

"Yeah, the plans going great. The professor found out but everything's going great now. As for Ryan, well, you didn't meet her at the club. She's really nice. What you also don't know is that in a way you owe her yours and Jonas's lives." 

"What do you mean I owe her!" Sammi said in a harsh whisper. "She nearly killed Jonas, and her buddy nearly killed me!" 

"She saved your lives. When Jonas brought you in, he passed out soon after and Hank had you both on the beds when Creed came in. He was about to kill you both and None of us could stop him. Ryan woke up and saw what he was going to do and stopped him. She saved you both. I think in a way that makes you even." Cara said trying to calm Sammi down she could see the fireworks in her eyes. 

"We are not fully even but I can admit when I'm wrong so I'll give her a chance but its going to take alot to get us even." Sammi said as she headed over to the contest. 

She looked at Jonas and telepathically told him what Cara just told her. She was watching the look on his face. 

/I'm going to thank her for both of us, Ok?/She asked him telepathically. 

He nodded his head. Sammi moved to stand next to Ryan, she could tell that everyone was starting to get nervous. 

Sammi held out her hand and said, "I'm Sammi. Thanks for stopping Creed in the medlab." Ryan didn't know what to do. She just stared at Sammi's hand. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

As Amanda left Cara and Sammi to meet up with the others, she began to feel uneasy. After what happened in the garden with her new powers, she had avoided really using her powers. She wasn't sure what was going on, but she could sense through a shallow psy-scan that something was going down and it involved her. 

(I could read their minds, but I don't want Charles hear me.) she thought. 

Amanda felt her heart ache at the thought of him. She had a feeling that their time together was shorter than anyone thought. She wanted to tell him how happy he had made her and how much she loved him. Why had she said the things she said. She knew the comments about Onslaught would hurt him but she had said it any way. Why did she pushed people away all the time? 

She glanced around trying to spot him. She was too unsure of her feeling and his to risk telepathic communication. She did know that she did have to talk to him tonight and apologize. She may never have his heart, but Amanda was not going to lose his friendship. If only she could find him. 

**A.C.**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena started to join the others, but hesitated. She didn't feel well. She sat back down next to Bobby, and whispered, "Bobby I don't feel well at all." 

She could see Sammi approaching Ryan, and was afraid of what might be happening. She couldn't hear them, and she started to feel worse. 

"Bobby, I have a heart condition. I haven't had my medication since I got here. When I don't take it, my heart races uncontrollably anytime I get very upset. This whole Jonas, Sammi, Ryan thing has had me tied in knots. Bobby I don't feel well." She finally repeated. 

She could see he was trying to say something to her, but she couldn't hear him. All she could hear was the sound of her own heart beat echoing in her ears. She felt herself being lowered to the floor. Bobby sat holding her in his lap on the ballroom floor. She thought how wonderful it felt to be held by him. 

She looked into his very concerned eyes, and knew she really could stare into their depths forever. She knew no one had ever made her happier. She whispered, "I love you, Bobby." She was so tired. She closed her eyes, and didn't open them again. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan was about to shake Sammi's hand and apologize for what she and Victor had done when she heard Bobby shout. She looked over to see him holding Athena's body on the floor. A million things started racing through Ryan's mind as she ran over to Athena. The only one that she could get out of her mouth was "What happened?" 

Bobby was crying over Athena's body screaming for Hank. "She needs Hank, he can fix this… He can fix anything! HANK! Get your furry butt over here now!" Bobby was frantic, he couldn't lose Athena just when he had found her, he would not let that happen. 

**Le Fae**

Leilee turned when she heard Bobby shout. Seeing Athena slouched on the floor she ran over to see what was wrong. By the time she crossed the extraordinarily large ballroom, Bobby and Hank were performing CPR, without result. 

Gently pushing Bobby's hands aside, she felt along her body, meanwhile asking, "Did she say anything was wrong?" 

Bobby nodded, eyes wide. "She said she missed her heart medication. It's for her heartbeat." 

Leilee nodded and gently traced her fingers over ribs, chest and sternum, pressing lightly. She gasped softly and sat back on her heels. 

"There's nothing we can do. She's gone. Her heart's just too damaged to beat anymore." 

Bobby stared at her eyes wild. "Do something! Fix it!" he shouted at her. 

She stood up, face pale as a ghost as tears ran down her face. "Bobby....I'm so sorry. There was nothing I could do. I can heal, but I can't raise the dead." 

He stared at her for a moment, and then walked out towards the garden. 

Cyclops went to go after him, but Leilee whispered from Gambits arms, "Stop. He needs to be alone." 

**Leilee**

"No!!!" Jonas yelled out in anger. "No one came here to die." 

Leilee looked at him holding back the tears. "Please, it's over, her heart is too damaged." 

Jonas grabbed Ryan by the wrist. "Then give her a new one." 

Ryan looked in to Jonas eyes, it was the same blue eyes that was on the dragon. But there was no anger, only pleading. 

"Ryan I know what you can do, you tried to do it to me didn't you? Back at the mall." Jonas held her wrist, hard but not painfully. 

Ryan looked at him. "I don't know if I can... it.. I mean..." 

Jonas locked eyes with her. "Please... Ryan, show me that I was wrong." there was desperation in his voice. 

Ryan saw the tears in his eyes, she sat down and put her hand on Athena's chest and concentrated, maybe it was possible... 

**Admiral**

Cara ran up to where the others were gathered around Athena...she fell to her knees next to the fallen girl, tears were streaming down her face. 

"NO! Athena, please, you can't be dead...Please Ryan...help her!!! I know you can!" Cara pleaded. 

Ryan looked over at Maria, who had made herself visible..."I need to concentrate...please take care of Cara!" she mouthed at the girl. 

Maria came over to where Cara sat shaking, and pulled her gently away...they both sat on the floor of the ballroom, and watched as Ryan worked. All was deathly quiet...the music had stopped, there wasn't anyone talking; even the wind outside seemed to be holding its breath, waiting to see if Athena would live again. 

**Rainfall**

Ryan sat on the floor trying to concentrate. Her mind was frantic…she was Athena's last hope. If she couldn't do it then it would be her fault or if she did something wrong … well she didn't want to think of that. 

"I can only do so much, she needs to want to live" Ryan said trying to hide the tears in her eyes. "Come on Athena, I promise if you make it through this I will make you the best metropolitan you have ever had." Ryan said remembering what Athena had said before she went outside with Bobby. "Hell I'll make you an entire pitcher of the stuff…. just don't die on me!" 

"AHHH!" Athena screamed as her body came to life once more. 

Everyone seemed to let out a breath they had been holding for what seemed like hours. 

"Someone, go get Bobby!" Leilee shouted in joy. 

**Le Fae**

Athena thought her chest was going to explode, it hurt so bad. She was still so tired, and for some reason frightened. She opened her eyes and saw Ryan. She tried to smile but couldn't move. Ryan seemed so upset. If anyone had said or done anything else to hurt Ryan, Athena swore she would make them pay! 

Where was Bobby? Athena couldn't understand why her body didn't seem to obey her commands. Was there another battle? Had she been injured? Oh no, was Bobby hurt? She couldn't stand that thought. 

**snowbaby**

Leilee ran to kneel beside her. "Just relax. Everything is going to be fine. Cara and Maria are going to go get Bobby. Just relax while I stabilize your body and make sure there's no rejection of the new heart." 

Gently, she lay Athena back down and ran her fingers over her chest and sternum. Thankfully, there was no damage to her body. Leilee slid an arm under Athena's slender body and assisted her into a sitting position. 

At this point, Maria and Cara had come back in with Bobby in tow. When he saw Athena alive, breathing and staring at him with a small smile, he lost it. He ran over to her and hugged her tightly, crying and whispering, "Don't ever do that ever again. I love you too much to lose you..." 

**Leilee**

Xavier and the other Cara made it to the ballroom just as Ryan brought Athena back to life. Charles sighed in relief, closed his eyes and rubbed his temples with both hands. 

He cleared his throat, and caught the attention of everyone in the room. 

"Under the circumstances, I believe that the rest of the party should be canceled..." he said in a tired voice. 

All of the occupants in the room looked at each other, and wordlessly began to exit the ballroom. It was a unanimous decision that they would leave the party cleanup until the next day. 

Bobby picked up Athena, and started to take her to the medlab...he decided he would never leave her side again. Beast walked right beside them, keeping track of Athena's pulse as they went down the corridor. The wonder woman Cara, Ryan and Maria followed at a distance...they wanted to make sure Athena was alright, but they wanted to give them some privacy as well. 

Amanda felt that she just couldn't take anymore...after she saw Athena come back to life, she walked out of the ballroom, and went outside. She was crying, and felt absolutely miserable. 

Sammi watched as Amanda left, she nudged Jonas and Jamar...they followed her glance, and looked at each other. There was only one person that Amanda needed right now, and they were going to do their best to arrange it. Sammi caught the other Cara's eye; Cara understood. Cara placed her hand on Xavier's shoulder; he looked up at her for a moment, then nodded. Wordlessly, they went outside in a direction opposite the one Amanda had taken. 

Sammi, Jonas and Jamar, all went outside, and caught up with Amanda. Amanda looked at them, then looked away...all she wanted right now was to be left alone. Why couldn't they just leave her alone? 

Sammi looked at Jonas and Jamar, they held back while Sammi walked up to Amanda, and put her arm around her shoulder. Amanda sighed, and leaned her head on Sammi's shoulder, and they continued walking through the garden...unbeknownst to Amanda, they were now walking in the direction that Cara and Charles had taken. 

As they rounded a corner in the garden, they came upon a little gazebo; Amanda straightened up and looked at it in surprise...for there was Charles! 

"What is this? What is going on?" Amanda asked in surprise. 

Cara stepped out of the shadows...she motioned at the table that was set up in the middle of the gazebo; it was round and had a pink table cloth, two long white candles in gold candle holders, and place settings for two people. 

"We've been planning this for you two for quite a while...there just never seemed to be a right time to spring it on you though." Cara explained. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jonas looked at Jamar. "I have to talk to someone... it's important." his voice was low and sad. 

Jamar nodded as Jonas lifted in to the air. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan sat to the steps to the house, for some reason she was exhausted. She was glad that Athena would live, she saved her... if it had not been for her, She would be dead. And that felt strange, Victor would flip about it. 

"I'm sorry..." A voice said behind her, she turned around it was Jonas, he was holding out his hand. 

"I'm sorry that I hurt you before... you came to warn us and I was too short sighted to realize that A person don't have to be all bad... you may have taken a wrong step or two, but I can see that the Others are right..." 

Ryan looked at him after the speech, it was him, she didn't like him and they would probably never be friends, but she understood that her anger might have been misplaced. 

Ryan took his hand and he helped her to her feet. 

"Maybe we both did things we regret." She said and locked eye's with him. 

"Perhaps, but thanks for saving her... only you could have done that." Jonas paused. 

"I was wrong about you, I owe you one... big time." he continued and let her hand go. 

He still hated her in a way, but he would be damned if he would not try and do something about it. 

**Admiral**

"Well at least you where only wrong about one thing. I have been wrong about a few things since I got here. I'm sorry for what Victor and I did to you and Sammi." Ryan said with complete sincerity. Things had changed so much since she came to this place. She had met new people and very typical of her she fell for the bad boy. 

"Thanks, I don't think Sabertooth and I will ever be friends but I think I can try to be your friend. At least we can be civil to each other." Jonas said smiling at the laugh it brought from Ryan. 

"I think I can manage that. It's all I can really ask for after all I've done to you. Victor on the other hand… well I don't think he is going to be shedding any tears about you two not being best buddies…but then again I don't think your going to be crying over that one either." 

"I don't understand what you see in him, but maybe you can give him a little stability." 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi saw Jonas leave and walked up to Jamar. He could tell by the look on her face that something was wrong. He hugged her and she lost it. As she was crying on his shoulder he kept stroking her hair and saying, "It's alright. Everyone's fine." 

"Its not that." Sammi said in between sobs."I froze. I couldn't move after Bobby yelled. And then when Leilee said she was dead, I could only think of the accident." 

"What happened? You never told me or anyone as far as I know." Jamar said as she held him tighter. 

"The night my parents died I was in the car. I held my mother's hand as she died. When I woke up in the hospital I heard the cop that found me tell the nurse that he had to pry my hand away. Tonight I kept seeing my mother's face as she died. I kept thinking I can't lose someone else. I didn't even get the chance to get to know her." 

"You can now." Jamar said. After a few moments her crying subsided. She pulled back and said,"You know I have cried more here that I have ever cried before." 

Jamar started laughing and headed towards the house still holding Sammi. She stopped walking and said," I have to see Ryan." Jamar nodded and she left. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

She found Ryan and Jonas talking. 

"Yeah, and maybe you can even bring back the old Creed." Sammi said standing next to Jonas. 

"Old Creed?" Ryan asked. 

"The man he was before he turned into the killing psychopath." Sammi said and she held out her hand, "We didn't get to finish this earlier." 

Ryan took her hand and shook it,"I'm Ryan. I'm sorry about everything." 

"Ok. I'm sick of crying, of being sorry, of fighting and everything else. I saw we get drunk. See if the X-men can handle us then. You up for it?" Sammi asked looking at Ryan. 

"Sure. Its been one hell of a ride." Ryan said as she got up. 

"And I don't think it's over just yet." Jonas said putting his arms around Sammi's waist from the back. 

"Yeah, We still have to figure out how we got here in the first place. I've been thinking, can't Gateway open dimensional portals? If he did this then he brought us all here for a reason, but what could that be?" Sammi said as the three walked back inside and straight to the bar. 

**jubilee_79**

Leilee took a swig from the sambuca bottle as she sat at the bar. Remy had gone upstairs, after being assured she would join him there later. 

"I can't take much more of this stress," she whispered. 

Upon hearing Sammi come in and ask why Gateway might have brought them there, Leilee turned to them and said, "Maybe to change the future. We know what's gonna happen. Maybe we have to change it." 

**Leilee**

**_

~Med Lab~

_**

Athena leaned back in the medlab bed and started to doze off. She felt so weak after everything that had happened. She felt horribly guilty for spoiling everyone's fun. She had been having so much fun. She was sorry it ended, she really wanted to spend more time with everyone. She decided there probably wouldn't be much chance of that now. 

Hank said she wasn't one hundred percent, and would have to rest for quite some time. Bobby seemed to be moving in to the medlab, she had no idea what he needed all this stuff for. He just kept having people bring things down from his room. Athena smiled, she had been so happy when he told her he was going to stay with her. 

She had never liked being alone in hospital rooms. She still missed her new friends though. She was almost asleep when suddenly she had an attack of the giggles. It was terrible, because it caused her chest to hurt worse. Bobby gave her a worried look, and Hank rushed over thinking she was choking. 

After convincing them she was fine, she said, "I just got tickled. I had a funny thought. Since I died, and then came back, does that make me an honerary Summers?" 

**snowbaby**

**_

~The Gazebo~

_**

Amanda smiled at Charles as she took a seat across from him. She had noticed the others had discretely left as soon they had finished setting up. Amanda didn't know whether to be angry at the invasion of privacy or touched by their concern. She probably felt the latter. 

The gazebo was beautifully decorated with lights and candles which caused her outfit to glitter. Charles had never seen a more beautiful sight. After what happened, Charles first thought had been to check up on Athena. When Cara had motioned for him he was about to refused when he picked up on Amanda's despair. 

As leader, he could understand the feeling of helplessness that on feels in those situations. The feelings of uselessness. He wanted to comfort her so bad that he would have followed Cara anywhere if it would make Amanda smile again. What he felt for her he felt for no one else, ever. He understood what Sammi and Jonas felt. He just wanted to be in her company and hear her voice. 

(Well, what do we do now?) Amanda asked. 

Xavier smiled. 

**A.C.**

**_

~Cara's Room~

_**

The two Caras had long since merged back into one Cara...but she felt strange. Very strange. Something was not right. She paced back and forth in her room...up and down the narrow walkway between the two beds. She just felt so...out of control. Arac had awakened... 

^Get dressed.^ the voice of Arac suddenly said in Cara's head. 

Cara stopped pacing, and as if in a trance, she walked over to the dresser and took out some clothes. She took off her night shirt and put on a pair of black jeans and a grey t-shirt, and a pair of sneakers. 

^Leave the room.^ was Arac's next order. 

Cara walked over to the door, opened it, and stepped out into the corridor. 

^Go to the Hanger.^ Arac ordered again. 

Cara made her way silently down the corridors of the mansion, until she reached the Secret Hanger where the X-Men kept their aircraft. She stepped inside, and waited...still in a sort of trance. 

^Get inside the cockpit of the Blackbird...we're going for a little ride.^ Arac ordered. 

Cara didn't move. 

^Get inside the cockpit...NOW!^ Arac ordered again. 

Cara still didn't move. 

Inside Cara's mind, a terrible battle had begun...between Arac, and Cara's subconscious self... 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi was drinking straight Vodka and it was having no affect on her. 

/Stupid healing factor./She thought as she heard Logan coming. She turned and faced the door. 

Logan entered and didn't know what to expect. He smelt the booze and that Leilee, Ryan and Sammi and Jonas were all in there, but when he stepped in he found Leilee with her head on the bar and a bottle in her hand. And Sammi looking at the door with Jonas's arm around her waist. And he was talking to Ryan and Sammi about something. He saw Sammi wave and say,"Hey, pop. What's up?" 

"What do you mean what's up? What do you guys think your doing?"Logan said as he got closer. 

"Nothing much. Getting drunk and trying to figure out why we are here in the first place." Sammi said smiling. 

He could tell that she was sober. 

"By the way, How do you get drunk when you have a healing factor?" 

"Ya don't, darlin'." Logan said smiling back at her. 

"Shoot. That sucks." She said. 

She was about to say something else when she heard it. It sounded like a plane starting up. She looked at Logan and could tell that he heard it too. 

"The Blackbird." They both said together. 

Jonas being not as drunk as Leilee or Ryan started to squeeze Sammi tighter. 

"What's wrong?" He asked. 

"Someone's taking the Blackbird." She said as used her telepathy to call Jean and tell her what she heard. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~The Hanger~

_**

Cara was lying unconscious on the floor of the hanger...she groaned, and opened her eyes, very carefully. The room was spinning...everything was blurry...there was a roaring sound in her ears. 

No, it wasn't in her ears...it was in the hanger. The Blackbird...it was taking off!!! 

"No, I've got to stop him!" Cara said frantically as she tried to stand up...she clutched her head with both hands and fell back to the ground; she took one hand away from her head and looked at it...it was bloody. She passed out cold. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan once again cursed herself for being drunk. " I really need to stop drinking. Bad stuff always seems to happen when I'm drunk," She muttered to herself as she ran with Wolverine, Sammi, Jonas, and Leilee towards what she assumed was trouble. 

Logan having heard what Ryan had said looked over to her and said "Darlin bad things happen here even when you're sober. It's just what happens in this place. No rest for the wicked." 

The group arrived in the hanger to see Victor Creed's form standing over an unconscious and bleeding Cara. Everyone except Ryan immediately went into attack mode. Ryan went into protection mode; she knew Victor wouldn't hurt Cara because of her. Ryan threw herself in between Victor and the rest of the group. "I know he didn't hurt her, please don't hurt him." 

As Ryan finished the last part, the Blackbird began to move which caught everyone's attention. 

**_

~Med Lab~

_**

Athena began to stir in the bed. She looked over to Bobby's sleeping form and began to have another giggle fit, which woke Bobby up. 

"What's so funny now?" He said smiling and glad to see that she was happy even in a hospital bed. 

"Your drool when you sleep freezes into little droolcicles!" She said smiling at him. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~Hanger~

_**

Jonas ripped of his warlock suit, removed the material he had used to mask his hockey stick and slapped it on his back. 

"Coming?" he held out his hand to Sammi and Wolverine. 

"I'll go Darlin', ye get Rogue... tell her to follow us, she will need yer sense of smell, beside I have more expertise." 

Sammi thought for a moment, then patted Logan on his back, kissed Jonas and yelled out "Go!" Jonas Grabbed Logan and was in the air, he pushed himself to the limit flying as fast as he could. 

Logan was taken by surprise by the speed that Jonas accelerated to this quick and it felt like his heart was about to go down in to his stomach. 

Jonas eye's focused on the rapidly accelerating blackbird, but he was coming up quick, too quick as it would be and he zoomed past it at top speed. He turned around and was met by two gleaming beams that hit him head on, and he lost his grip of Wolverine. It hurt like hell and a red glow surrounded him, disorienting him, he was forced to get away from it if he was to get hold of Wolverine again. 

But unfortunately as he tried to get away from it, he was hit again, this time he was thrown of course and was even more disoriented and started to fly faster to an undetermined destination. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Wolverine was going fast as Jonas lost his grip and continued on his course through the air on his own accord, but the Blackbird was coming up behind him, and at the precise moment he slammed his claws in to the back of the plane, and held on to it with all of his might. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jonas started to get out of his fogged mind, in time to see the FF. HQ building coming right at him. 

"Yikes!!" was all he had time to say as he slammed right in to the side of it, and the next second he came out on the other side of the building, barely awake he tried to adjust his flight but it was no use. He saw another building this one not as big, but sufficient to knock him out. 

Something lifted him up in the air, strong hand gripped his arm, and weak he opened his eyes and looked in to two blue eyes. 

"Explain thyself, or thou shalt know the wrath of Thor!" 

Jonas blinked... "Tor?" he asked doubting what he was seeing. 

Thor looked at him strange, as his eyes fell on his silver chain around Jonas neck. 

"Thou call me by the ancient name, and wear the worship of Mjolner round thy neck?" 

Jonas decided to try something. "*I beg thy forgiveness, my actions was not one of attack*" 

Thor looked at him surprised. "*Thou speak the forgotten tong, of those who ones worshiped us as god's*" 

**Admiral**

**_

~X-Mansion, Hanger~

_**

Sammi watched Jonas and Wolverine go, then she turned and ran out of the hanger to search for Rogue. She met up with Jamar in the hallway and took him with her. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Cara woke up...she groaned, and tried to sit up. Leilee helped her. Cara shook her head to try to clear it; when she did, she saw Leilee, Ryan and...Sabertooth!!! 

"EEEP!!!" Cara yelped. 

Sabertooth smirked. 

"What happened...did this creep attack you?" Leilee asked; she glared at Sabertooth. 

Cara sighed and shook her head... 

"No, he didn't attack me. You're not going to believe who did though...well, maybe you will, considering all of the weird stuff that goes on around here." She said, tiredly. 

Cara put a hand to her head...the blood was still sticky, but the wound seemed to have stopped bleeding, at least for the moment. 

"Look...let's take her down to the medlab and get her checked out...she can tell us what happened then." Leilee said. She eyed Sabertooth warily. "Ryan, I think your 'friend' should probably leave right now..." Leilee was interrupted by the unsheathing of Sabertooth's claws. She gulped. 

Ryan put a hand on Sabertooth's shoulder, and looked in his eyes for a long moment. He gradually relaxed, and pulled in his claws. He looked at Leilee. 

"Sorry frail, but you're stuck with me...I ain't leavin' Ryan, and she's bent on staying here...so live with it." he growled. 

To everyone's shock and amazement, Creed strode over to Cara, picked her up, threw her over his shoulder and began to walk out of the hanger carrying her fireman style. 

Ryan and Leilee froze, and stared after him, their eyes wide with shock. 

Creed stopped in the hanger doorway, and looked back at Ryan. "I'm taking her to the medlab so we ALL can get some answers...you coming?" he asked. 

Ryan and Leilee looked at each other...then started walking after Creed...they almost had to run to keep up with him. 

**_

~The Blackbird~

_**

The mysterious figure in the cockpit smiled a cruel smile as he saw Jonas drop Wolverine and fly off disoriented...the smile quickly turned into a frown as he heard the sound of Wolverine's claws dig into the Blackbird. 

"I don't think so, my fine friend...not this time. I'm afraid I'm going to have to shake you, if my plan is to succeed...I hope you can swim." the man in the cockpit said as he began to rock the Blackbird back and forth in a violent manner. 

Wolverine was doing his best to hang on...but he was losing his grip fast...his heart was beating double time and he couldn't catch his breath...he didn't know how much more he could take. 

/Get here quick, darlin'.../ he thought, trying to send a message to Sammi. She and the other telepaths of the new group seemed to be stronger than even Xavier, so he hoped that she could hear him. 

**Rainfall**


	17. Reality Bites-Part 17

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.

**

Reality Bites-Part 17

**

As Sabertooth walked down the hallway to the med lab, he called to Ryan over his shoulder. "I think you should keep that costume on until we get sometime alone frail, I always wanted to know what Audrey Hepburn would be like… and maybe you could borrow that other costume for tomorrow." 

Leilee and Ryan looked at each other both suddenly feeling very self-conscious. They where still in their costumes because neither had time to change since the party had been canceled. 

Sabertooth entered the med lab, and screaming along with shouts of "Sound the alarm!" rang through the lab and down the hall. Leilee and Ryan quickened their pace to get into the lab before someone accidentally caused Cara more harm trying to get to Victor. 

"Stop!" Ryan shouted entering the lab. "He's not here to hurt people. Cara has been hurt by some unknown person and he is helping us bring her to you to help her." 

Bobby stood protectively over Athena's bed. He was not about to let Creed near her. Leilee walked over to him to try to assure him that Victor was not going to hurt anyone, at least with Ryan in the room. 

Hank on the other hand shifted into doctor mode and took Cara's body from Creed setting her on an examination table. He began to examine the girl checking the damage done to her head. 

"Can I talk to you alone?" Ryan said to Victor motioning him to leave the lab with her. She knew it would make everyone in the room feel much better plus she really wanted to talk to him. 

"What are you doing here?" She asked him when they were safely away from everyone. 

"Do you honestly think I was going to let you come here by yourself? I wasn't about to let you walk into some kind of trap." 

"Do you mean to tell me you have been watching me the entire night?" Ryan asked in disbelief "Don't you trust me?" 

"I trust you with my life frail, I just don't trust anyone else. " Victor said carefully. He had forgotten what it was like to have a girlfriend. Now he remembered that the slightest thing could get him in trouble. 

"You really trust me with your life?" Ryan smiled and jumped on Victor kissing his entire face. 

"Ahem!" Ryan was in the middle of kissing Victor when the scene was broken by Leilee. "Hank needs your help, Ryan, Cara needs blood and you're the only one who has the same blood type as her." 

"Oh, No problem." Ryan said walking back into the lab. Victor followed grinning madly as he passed Leilee and entered the lab. 

Hank sat Ryan down on one of the spare beds and began to take blood from her. "She is going to be fine, but it is a good think you are here." 

Maria entered the lab to see Victor Creed standing next to Ryan. " I am never going to get used to seeing him around you." She said eyeing Creed while walking over to Cara who was on the table. "How is she?" 

"She lost a lot of blood but Ryan is taking care of that." Hank said as he finished with Ryan cleaning the puncture wound in her arm. 

Maria walked over to Ryan and asked, "What happened?" 

"I don't know. We are waiting for some answers ourselves." Leilee answered. 

**Le Fae**

Athena touched Bobby's hand, and he returned to sit on the bed. He still looked uncertain at the other occupants of the medlab. Athena gently lay her head against him. 

"See, everything's all right." She soothed. 

When Victor had first come in carrying Cara, she had been frightened. She had felt her heart start to race again. Then Ryan had been there, and Athena knew it was safe. Somehow, now she couldn't imagine Ryan hurting any of them. Slowly, she felt her pulse return to normal, though the pain in her chest had returned. 

She knew they would all make it through this. Between Hank, Leilee and Ryan, they could get Cara to pull through. They could do anything. She still had to admit, it was odd seeing Victor acting even remotely kind or concerned. 

/He's more like Wolverine than he would like to admit./ she thought. 

She smiled and squeezed Bobby a little harder. 

**snowbaby**

Cara opened her eyes slowly...when her eyes adjusted, she found herself looking up into the concerned eyes of Hank. 

"What happened, Cara?" he asked. 

Cara looked carefully around the room...she saw Athena, Bobby, Leilee, Maria, Ryan, and Sabertooth; Sabertooth was grinning at Ryan. Everyone seemed to be waiting for Cara to say something. 

Cara sighed and put a hand to her forehead, wincing when she saw the IV that was stuck in her arm. 

"You lost a lot of blood...Ryan was kind enough to give you a transfusion. Now, please, tell us...What Happened?!" Beast asked again. 

"You're not going to believe this, but..." replied Cara, as she began to relate what had happened. 

***** 

**_~Cara's Flashback~_**

Cara stood in the Hanger, in a sort of trance. She was locked in a mental battle with her alternate self. Unknown to her, Sabertooth was watching from the shadows. 

^Get into the Cockpit...NOW!^ Arac ordered a third time, ^You cannot defy me, don't even try...you are too weak!^ 

^NO! I will not get into the cockpit...I know what you are planning...I will NOT betray the X-Men, or my friends!!!^ Cara's mental self responded. 

She began to try to suppress Arac...Arac felt its hold slipping. 

^NO!!! You can't do this to me!!! I won't let you!!!^ Arac said angrily. 

Arac concentrated with all of its might...It would never be ruled by this simpleton...this weakling. Arac was its own identity, its own entity. It would not allow itself to be a part of this fool any longer...Arac was its name, and Arac MUST LIVE!!! 

Cara screamed and fell to the floor of the Hanger...she felt like she was being ripped in two, like the first time that she had split. She blacked out...and when she came to, she was once again face to face with herself. But, there was something different...Cara's eyes opened extremely wide with shock, as she realized what the difference was. 

"What the...YOU'RE A MAN!!!" Cara's shriek echoed throughout the Hanger. 

Arac smiled a cruel smile. "Not just a man, but a man with a mission. And I can't have you ruining it, so I'm going to have to get you out of the way..." he said. 

Arac focused all of his mental energies into his hand...it glowed, and he pulled his hand back into a fist. Cara's eyes widened as she understood what he was about to do, and she tried to duck out of the way, but she wasn't fast enough. 

As Cara turned her head, Arac's explosive punch clipped the side of her head; Cara went down as her world erupted in a sea of red pain and streaks of lightning...then she blacked out. She was lucky. If Arac's punch had caught her full force in the forehead like he had planned, it would have killed her. 

Arac smiled cruelly at the fallen girl, then turned and jumped into the cockpit of the Blackbird. He started the engines. 

Sabertooth came out of the shadows and stood over Cara. He looked at the Blackbird, and he looked back down at the unconscious girl. /Kid, you've sure got some problems.../ he thought, as he wondered what he should do now. He knew Ryan liked the girl, and that she wouldn't like this one bit. 

As he was thinking, that's when everyone ran into the Hanger... 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi had ripped off her costume, because she had her uniform underneath and was trying to explain to Rogue what happened when she caught Wolverine's message. 

"We have to go NOW. There's a problem. Are we flying in or out of a plane?" Sammi asked Rogue. 

"Never mind that, I got an idea. Me and Rogue are going to help Wolverine. Jamar, you get Storm and Cyclops and whoever else will come and follow the Blackbird with the other plane, us the tracking device on the Blackbird." Sammi said in one breath. She slipped into leader mode as soon as They saw the Blackbird take off. 

"Good, plan, sugar. Let's go." Rogue said as she followed Sammi out the door. 

Sammi turned and looked at Jamar and they both said at the same time, "Be careful." And they were off. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi and Rogue were flying in the direction that the blackbird took. Sammi was following Wolverine's and Jonas's smell then she smelled only Wolverine. 

"They got separated. Wolverine's with the Blackbird and Jonas headed that way." She said pointing towards New York City. 

"What is he doing over there?" Rogue asked looking towards the city. 

"I don't know but I know that he is fine. Wolverine's the one I more worried about. LOOK! There's the Blackbird and... BLOODY HELL." 

"What's wrong, Sugar?"Rogue asked trying to see what Sammi saw. 

"Logan's hanging on to the Blackbird. And who ever is driving, is trying to shake him off." Sammi said pointing. 

"I see it. What are we going to do?" Rogue asked. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jamar had gotten Cyclops, Jean, Warren, Betsy and Cable. They were all in another plane and were drawing fast on the Blackbird. 

Jamar was looking out of the cockpit window, and then he saw the Blackbird and Sammi and Rogue behind it. Then he saw what she was doing. "Hurry, she's going to try to get into the plane." He said as he saw Sammi jump from Rogue's arms and land right on the side of the plane. She started to rip in to the plane with her claws. 

"Rogue's got Wolverine, but I don't see Jonas." Jean said as she opened the door for Rogue and Wolverine. 

Wolverine stood up and headed for the window. He saw Sammi and yelled, "Someone get out there in case she falls." 

"I'm on it." Warren said as he flew outside. 

In the plane, everyone saw Warren fly up to Sammi. 

,p> "Need a hand?" He asked. 

"Yeah, I'm strong, but not this strong. Help me pull the door off." Sammi said as she tried to pry the door open. 

**jubilee_79**

Arac saw the other plane come alongside...he heard Sammi try to pry the door open. 

"Sorry girl, but I'm not about to let you ruin my plan either..." he said to himself. 

He placed one hand on the roof of the Blackbird...the aircraft began to glow as it absorbed his explosive power. He concentrated and mentally sent a message to Sammi. 

~I know you can hear me. I have infused the Blackbird with explosive energy...I can control it up to a point; but if you don't get Warren and everyone else away from this aircraft right now, I will be forced to blow it, myself, and everyone else up along with it. NOTHING will interfere with my plan!!!~ Arac coldly thought. 

Sammi's eyes grew wide as she intercepted the message. 

**Rainfall**

"WARREN! WE have to get out of here NOW!!" Sammi yelled. Warren didn't ask any questions; he just grabbed her and headed back for the other plane. 

Jamar and Logan ran to the door as they saw them coming back. 

"What happened, darlin'?" Logan asked as he and Jamar checked for any injuries. 

"He's gonna blow it. We have to get out of here, now." Sammi said loud enough for Scott to hear her. 

"Everyone take their seats. We're heading home." Scott said as he started to turned the plane. 

Sammi had to see this guy. She ran to the cockpit and looked over just in time to see the young man give her a cocky, yet evil grin. 

"What? It can't be." She said as she realized who he reminded her of. 

She headed to her seat after Jean told her to. She sat next to Logan and Jamar not saying a word. 

/I have to find out what happened in the hanger./She thought as they headed home. 

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

Sammi was the first one off of the plane. She ran to the med lab to find Cara. Cara was laying on one of the beds and Ryan was talking to her. Sammi saw Creed and stopped in her tracks. 

"What is HE doing here?" She asked looking at everyone. Bobby patted Athena's hand and started walking towards her. 

"Sammi. Its Ok. He here for Ryan. He's not going to try anything funny. Are you?" Bobby said looking at Creed. 

"Not now, frail." Creed said with a grin as he look from Sammi to Ryan. 

"I'll deal with you later." She said to Creed and turned to Cara and said," He's the first double, isn't he?" 

Cara and everyone else was shocked. "How did you know?" She asked. 

"I saw his face. He has your power and he knew I was a telepath." Sammi said walking over to her. "What I don't know is how? Is that's what was wrong with you after you first split? Why didn't you tell any of us?" 

"I didn't want you all to think I was weak and hearing things." Cara said sadly. 

Sammi hugged her and said,"None of us would have thought you weak. And as for hearing things. I grew up with Jamar, I wouldn't have thought you were hearing things." 

"Thanks." Cara said returning the hug. 

"Sammi got up and walked over to Athena. She held out her hand and said," I'm Sammi. I'm sorry I couldn't get to know you better before this but I just can't seem to stay out of trouble."She said with a smile."Oh by the way, Don't you go and die on us again, because none of us are ready to lose any of us now or ever, got it?" 

Athena smiled,"Thanks. I'll try." Bobby came over and wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek. 

Sammi saw this and leaned over to Bobby and said in his ear,"Its about time, Icepop. You deserve it." She stood up with a smile on her face and turned and faced everyone and said, "So has anyone heard form Jonas?" 

**jubilee_79**

Leilee shook her head. "I haven't heard from him. What happened? Did you guys beat Arac?" 

Sammi shook her head. "No. He would have blown up the ship." 

Leilee grabbed her and dragged her outside. "I think I can get to him." 

"How?" 

"Like many other mutants, I am over-powered and hated for it. I can teleport over, knock him out and bring the plane back." 

**Leilee**

**_

~The Blackbird~

_**

Arac smiled a victorious smile as he watched the other plane leave. Carefully, he concentrated... the glow that surrounded the Blackbird dispersed, as Arac successfully quieted the explosive energy, leaving the Blackbird unharmed. 

Arac shook his head. If Gambit only knew the true extent of his own powers...what he was really capable of...but he didn't. He and the other X-Men were too careful, they would never reach their true potential. 

Arac shook his head again. He reached over and successfully disengaged the tracking device, so no one would be able to trace him again. 

He laughed gleefully, maniacally, as he continued on his way. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

"I wouldn't suggest doing that, Leliee." informed Amanda as she and Xavier entered the med-lab in their slightly disheveled clothes. 

"Why shouldn't I?" asked Leliee as she took in their appearance. 

"Because if you do, we will never discover the truth behind why you are here." Stated Xavier in a dignified tone despite his appearance. 

Everyone looked at the two in amazement. Answers were the one thing no one seemed to have. 

"But how do you know...?" questioned Cara. 

"I have been gaining pieces of this puzzle slowly the longer we been here. Just a few minutes ago, I finally found the last piece. By the time we got back to the mansion, all hell had broken loose and we went straight to Cerebro so that we could monitor the situation. Xavier just called the others back and......Why is Sabertooth here?" 

Sabertooth just sneered and replied. " Why do you look like you just...." 

"It's a long story, we'll explain in the ready room. The others will be here soon." 

"Wait! How will we find ....?" asked Cara 

"Don't worry child. We know where he's going." stated Xavier. 

**A.C.**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

As Sammi and Leilee were walking to the danger room, they passed through the front hallway which had a stand with one of the many telephones in the house. As they started to pass it, the phone rang. Sammi and Leilee stopped dead in their tracks. They looked at each other. 

"That's a first. Think we should answer it?" Sammi asked, looking at the phone. 

"Go ahead." Leilee said, also looking at the phone. 

Sammi picked up the receiver. "Xavier School of Higher Learning. Samantha speaking. How can I help you?" 

"I was wondering if you can help me. Are you a new student?" The voice on the line said. 

"Yes. How can I help you?" 

"Is there by any chance a student there by the name of Jonas Ljungberg?" 

"Yes, but he's not here at the moment. Can I take a message?" 

"Actually, I know he's not there, because he's here. I was just checking to see if he is who he says he is." 

"Can I ask you a question?"Sammi said she had to find out who this was. 

"Sure, miss." 

"You know who I am but I don't know who you are or where Jonas is, would you please tell me?" 

"Sorry. I was rude. This is Captain America, and Jonas is at the Avengers Headquarters." 

"He's where?" Sammi asked thinking that she didn't hear right. 

Leilee was watching her and said,"Where is he?" 

"He's at the Avengers Headquarters." Sammi said to her. To Captain America she said," If he's there, can I speak with him?" 

"Sure. Here he is." 

"This is Jonas." Jonas said as he came on the line. 

"First off, How did you get to the Avengers Headquarters?" Sammi said, a little relieved to hear his voice. 

"Sammi, Its a long story and I can't wait to tell you." Jonas started but Sammi interrupted. 

"I'd love to hear it but you have to get here fast. The professor figured out why we're here." 

"You're kidding? Someone finally figured it out. I'll get there as fast as I can." 

"Jonas, Honey, can you put Captain America back on the phone?" Sammi asked. 

"Sure." Jonas said a little skeptical, "Here he is." 

"Yes, Samantha."Captain America said. 

"Would you do me a favor and bring Jonas home? I don't want him to end up in Timbuktu this time." Sammi said with a smirk. 

"No problem. We'll be there shortly." Captain America said. 

**_

~Avengers Headquarters~

_**

Captain America hung up the phone and started laughing. 

Jonas was looking at him thinking, /What could she have possibly said to him?/ 

"What?" Jonas asked as Captain America started to calm down. 

"Samantha's your girlfriend, right?" Captain asked. 

"Yeah, so? Why what did she say to you?" Jonas asked. 

"She just asked if we could bring you back." 

"Why?" 

"She doesn't want you to end up in Timbuktu this time." 

Everyone in the office started to laugh. Even Jonas and Thor chuckled a little. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

Teb ran up to Sammi and Leilee in the hall. 

"Hey, have you seen Angelo?" she asked 

"No..."said Sammi, "And did you hear? The Professor knows why we're here. Maybe we can go home." 

"Home?!" Teb screamed and smiled, then stopped and started to look sad. "I've gotta go find Angelo." 

Teb ran around the mansion screaming for Angelo. She wasn't looking where she was going and ran into Wolverine. 

"Watch it, kid." he snarled. 

"Sorry...ANGELO?" she kept yelling. 

"Hey kid, he's on the roof." 

Teb stopped. The roof. Of course. 

"Thanks." she said and jumped out the nearest window and swung herself up on the roof. 

She saw Angelo and walked over and sat down next to him. He had headphones on and looked asleep. Teb watched him for a second. He looked very peaceful. She decided to wait till later to talk to him. She was about to go when she turned to him again and bent over and kissed him on the lips. 

/No harm if he's sleeping./ she thought. 

She got back up and started to walk away, when something grabbed her ankle and she fell over. 

"Sorry, Chica." Ange said with a chuckle. "Didn't mean to make you fall." 

Teb looked over. Ange was in the same position he was in before, only with his arm stretched out and his skin around her foot. she got up and brushed herself off. 

"If I had nails, I would have broken one." she said, and sat next to Ange again. 

"Heh, si chica." he laughed. "So, were you looking for me?" 

/No time like the present./ Teb thought. "Yea, I wanted to talk to you... about....um..." 

"I wasn't asleep, chica." Angelo said and put on a grin. 

Teb smiled. She wasn't one to "talk" about things. 

"And you're cool with it?" she asked. 

"Si chica, si." 

Teb smiled and leaned against him. then she remembered. 

"Xavier and Amanda know why we're here." she said and looked up at his face, " This might lead us to go home." 

Angelo thought about this. "Do you want to go home?" 

Teb sighed, "Yes, and no." 

Angelo nodded and they fell asleep on the roof 

**teb**

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Sinister stood watching as his prize worked...she was a very powerful mutant telepath; his first successful supermutant creation. 

She wore a long dark cloak, with a hood which covered her head and face. Behind the hood, her silver eyes glowed as she used her powers. She was known as Anon. 

**_

~The Blackbird~

_**

Arac was flying the Blackbird toward a destination known only to him. For some reason, he began to change course... 

/Wait a minute, what's going on?/ he thought. 

He put himself back on course, but almost immediately, his course changed yet again. 

/This is really getting weird...why do I keep changing my course? Is it Xavier and those other telepathic idiots? I wouldn't think that they had it in them...they're too stupid to think anything like this up. No, it must be someone else.../ Arac thought. 

He began to change course again, but decided against it. If someone wanted him that badly, he was going to find out who, and why. Then he was going to really make them hurt. 

He plotted a course which followed the pattern which someone had implanted in his brain. 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon smiled behind her hood...the subliminal messages she had implanted in Arac's mind were working...Arac was coming 'home'. 

/That's right Arac, come, meet your 'father'...he has work for you to do./ Anon thought, as she smiled behind her mask. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

Amanda and Xavier were sitting in the war room, waiting for everyone to join them. Both were tense by the realization of what was really happening and who was behind it. Both were thinking about what had happened between them. After Sabertooth's comment, Amanda had gone upstairs to change and Charles had not seen her since. He knew she was worried for the emotional stability of her team after they found out the truth. 

(It will be all right. We will handle it together .) 

(I know.) she replied. 

Charles mind wandered back to the gazebo. To his confession of love. To her saying that she was in love with him. To their kiss. To..... 

(As much as I enjoy that, Charles, we do have other things that demand our attention.) She playfully reprimanded. 

Charles laughed, (Sorry, but it seems to keep appearing in my mind. The more I try to stop, the more it appears.) 

(You won't be laughing if you start getting teased about it. It's already bad that Sabertooth knows. Wait until Bobby, Hank, Logan, and the others find out. I can just imagine the teasing I'm going to get from Jonas. I mean, you were the one lecturing about not sharing a room with Sammi.) Amanda smiled as she saw Charles blush. 

(What if this will be our last time together? I don't think we have that much time left.) 

(You knew the risks when we got involved, Amanda. We both accepted them.) Charles reminded her. 

(Yes, I know, but what about the others? The X-men and my team have become so intertwined that I don't know how everyone is going to react when they find out that we may never see each other again.) 

Charles took her hand and urged her sit in his lap. She went willingly, just happy to be with him. his arms encircled her and held her. He never wanted to let go. 

"We will deal with this together as a team." he stated. 

Amanda prayed he was right. 

**A.C.**

"By the way," Charles said as he looked at the lovely vision he held in his arms. "Has your team decided on a name?" 

Amanda smiled..."Sammi suggested a couple of names, and we all took a vote on it at the party. Our team name is Vision-X." 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Avenger's Headquarters~

_**

Jonas got in the Avengers plane, he was still dizzy and was glad that they agreed to give him a ride. 

To his own dismay he managed to stumble on his way into the plane, but Thor was quick to grab him. 

"Thanks," Jonas said and got into the plane. Captain America directed him to a seat and he and Iron Man walked into the cockpit. 

"Man, are Sammi and the rest going to have a laugh out of this." he said closing his eyes. 

"That they may." Thor closed the hatch. 

"I feel so stupid, I could have killed someone, and I would have if I had hit something like a hospital..." 

"It's not thy fault, thou was struck down cowardly." Thor said and sat down. "Thou shalt be glad to have avoided the cold touch of death." 

"Yeah, I guess, when I saw the Fantastic Four building... Do you think they will be mad?" 

"Reed did express some concern about that hole straight through their Headquarters, and apparently you managed to destroy Ben's TV, I think he was rather upset." Captain America said as he came out from the cockpit. 

Jonas bit down and furrowed his eyebrows. "Don't worry, he has been through the same once or twice himself." he smiled and added. 

Jonas felt the plane lift in to the air, and looked out the window. 

"So how long have you been at Xavier's?" Captain America said and sat down across from Jonas. 

"Cap, that is more complex then you could ever know, I mean, the real question would be, how long have I been in this universe at all... don't ask." 

Jonas didn't want to say too much, so he decided to shut up about it. "On second thought, I think Xavier might be best to explain." 

"Perhaps..." Captain America said. 

It didn't take long for the to reach the mansion, and Captain America only asked some polite question to pas the time. Thor also got to hear the story behind the hammer around Jonas neck and how the Asgard mythology always had fascinated him, Thor talked a little about what he knew of that time. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jonas didn't even get out of the plane before Sammi dragged him off it. "Come, Xavier and Amanda are waiting..." she paused as Thor walked out of the plane. "Wow! Thor?" 

"Tell you later." Jonas said and gave Sammi a hug. "You'll never guess who I *RAN* in to." 

Sammi looked at Thor, Captain America and Iron man that now was out of the plane. "Will you join us? Xavier would probably want to speak with you." 

Captain America nodded and the three followed Sammi and Jonas. 

**Admiral**


	18. Reality Bites-Part 18

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 18

**

Cara, Leilee and Maria got to the War Room at the same time as Beast and Bobby, who was carrying Athena. The girls smiled at Athena; she looked a lot better...they were glad. They let Beast, Bobby and Athena go in first. 

Scott saw Bobby and Athena...he stood up out of his chair and motioned for Bobby to sit down in it. Bobby nodded his thanks and sat down, cradling Athena on his lap. Scott moved and stood behind Jean's chair, resting his hands on her shoulders. She smiled up at him. 

Cara, Leilee and Maria entered...they were the last ones. Jamar had come in earlier, and was now standing next to Sammi and Jonas. 

Gambit was sitting down; he motioned for Leilee to come and sit down on his lap...there really wasn't anywhere else. With all of the X-Men, Generation X, The Avengers, and now the newly named Vision-X team, it was a full house. Leilee walked over to Gambit and sat down...she giggled a little over something that he whispered in her ear. 

Maria walked over to stand by Cable...she wanted to talk to him after this was over. 

Cara saw Ryan, and smiled and waved at her. She was glad that Ryan was here, even though she was a little wary of Sabertooth. Amanda and Xavier were discussing something in hushed tones, and hadn't called the meeting to order yet, so Cara walked over to where Teb and Angelo were sitting. 

"Hi Teb, Angelo! How are you two doing?" she said. 

**Rainfall**

Sammi sat between Logan and Jonas, She was holding both of their hands. She leaned over to Jonas and said, "If they found a way home, do you think there will be a way back?" 

Jonas looked at her. He knew that here was the only home she had known for along time, but he had a feeling that if they did get home, they wouldn't be coming back. 

"I don't know. Hopefully." He said sadly. 

She gave him a small smile and said,"Thanks." She turned and leaned over to Logan and said," If there isn't away back once we get home, I want you to know. I'll never forget you, dad." 

Logan looked at her and gave her a hug. In her ear he said, "Don't worry. I'll always find a way to protect you, daughter." They sat like that for a few seconds, til Xavier called for their attention. 

"Now that everyone's here, we can begin." He began as everyone quieted down. "We're going to start from the beginning, so that everyone that doesn't know the whole story will understand everything." 

Cable leaned over to Maria and said,"I'm starting to realize that we have more in common than first thought." 

Maria just nodded and turned her attention back to the professor. /It's gonna be a long night./ She thought. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~The Blackbird~

_**

Arac had been following the mysterious course for some time...it led him over a long stretch of sea, with no land or any islands in sight. Suddenly, he spotted it...A small desert island which seemed to appear out of nowhere. 

/Hmmm...must have some sort of cloaking device. Very interesting.../ Arac thought to himself. 

At Anon's subliminal urgings, Arac prepared to land on the small island. 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon smiled as she telepathically saw the Blackbird touch down. "He is here, 'Father'." she said to Sinister. 

Sinister smiled an evil smile...soon his plan will be complete. The others will surely seek this boy out, then he will have all of his perfect creations right where they belong. "Get ready..." Sinister called to his men. "Tell him to come here." he ordered Anon. 

Anon complied, and sent another subliminal message to Arac. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

As soon as Anon transmitted the message, Arac was up and out of the cockpit. He wasn't sure who he was dealing with, or what they wanted...he figured it was probably some sort of trap, but he wasn't afraid. He wanted some answers, and he wasn't about to sit around and wait for them to come to him. He was going to find them. Then he was going to make someone hurt for interfering with his plan. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Amanda was talking to Xavier when she felt another one of those feelings come over her. She knew that Sinister was using his new toy again. The headache had begun shortly after the party and had been getting worse. She was having a little trouble focusing her thoughts. 

Charles had noticed the pained look on Amanda's face and knew something was up. Even though these headaches were the reason they had figured out Sinister's plan, he did not like to see her in pain. Charles put a hand on her shoulder, an action that was noticed by most in the room. 

From his view point, Sabertooth watched with some interest. He had known what had happened between them the minute they had enter the mansion. His senses could not be decieved no matter what tricks they pulled. He was slightly surprised that old baldy had it in him to go after such a young chick, but then he had fallen for Ryan. She even had him behaving. Still, the behavior was soo unlike chrome-dome that he found himself gaining a new respect for the man. For an old guy he had manage to score with a rather fetching frail, not that she was better looking then Ryan. Sabertooth wondered if any of the X-men knew of their mentors new project. He could probably have some fun with this. Even Ryan couldn't object. Sabertooth smiled. 

**A.C.**

Leilee shifted slightly in Gambit's lap. She couldn't believe he said that!!!! Especially here with both Logan and Sabretooth only a couple feet away! But they had been in the room for a good 10 minutes, and the meeting still hadn't started, because people kept talking. Xavier seemed to be having trouble between everyone talking and Amanda's headache, which Leilee was starting to pick up. 

Sighing, Leilee stood up and climbed on top of the table. Projecting in a clear but not too loud voice, she said, "Excuse me, everyone! I think Xavier's ready to start the meeting." 

Hearing this, Everyone quieted. Leilee climbed down, settled in Gambit's lap again and focused her attention on the Professor. 

**Leilee**

Athena snuggled closer to Bobby. She really did want to know what had brought her here, but part of her was afraid. If they knew how they got here then they might have to go back, and she didn't want that. Her head felt a little swimmy, she had not realized how weak she had become. She glanced around the room at her friends. 

/I wonder what they think about all of this. If we do go back, can things ever be the same? No, it would never be like before. It would be agony without Bobby./ 

Just the thought made her sad. Tears slowly and silently made their way down her cheek. 

**snowbaby**

Ryan clutched Victor's hand protectively. She had been thinking about the day she would be leaving for sometime, but now it seemed closer then ever. At first she wanted to go back desperately… but now things changed. When she went home all she had was jail. She was facing charges for the fire she set to her ex-boyfriends house and she didn't know what to do. 

Granted if she had it all to do over again she wouldn't change a thing. Except maybe get some of her stuff out before she set fire to the place. 

She glanced around the room looking at all the new friends she made. She saw Athena sitting on Bobby's lap and saw the tears in her eyes. 

/I know what you're feeling girl,/ she thought, then she looked towards Victor and thought of her own happiness. 

She knew it would be hard to leave him but she didn't belong here. He seemed to understand that this is the way it would have to be. They had discussed her leaving a while back. She had teased him that he would be happier without her because he could go back to his old ways. He just looked at her with sad eyes and said, "I'll never be happier then I am with you." 

Ryan looked to the professor and waited for him to speak. 

**Le Fae**

Charles Xavier cleared his throat, and looked around at the inhabitants of the room...letting his eyes linger on the faces of team Vision-X. 

"Team Vision-X, you have been here such a short time; yet...you all have become as dear to me as my own X-Men, and Generation X. Who would have thought the joy you would bring to our lives, especially after such a rocky beginning." he said, as he recalled the various battles they had had when Vision-X had first arrived. 

Ryan, Athena and Teb all looked surprised, and they looked questioningly at the other members of the group, who were blushing, smirking and shuffling their feet. Cara smiled at Ryan, Athena and Teb, and mouthed, "I'll tell ya later..." she grinned. 

The Professor continued, "Now, to start at the beginning. Amanda and I have discovered the origin of your powers...We believe Sinister to be behind this." 

Every inhabitant of the war room gasped...and everyone began to question the Professor and Amanda at once. 

**Rainfall**

"What do you mean Sinister is behind our powers? I was the only one who was dropped in Sinister's hideout. " Ryan said in disbelief. 

She could see how he would be behind her newfound powers, but the others? From what she understood, they were all dropped in the X-Mansion. She looked to Victor. 

"Do you know anything about this? I mean big and ugly did something to change me before I woke up in your room, right?" she asked. 

"Nope Frail, and I don't know what happened. I had just gotten there and was shown to my new room when I saw this portal open and you dropped in. He came in shortly after and stopped me from killin you." 

"Great, I'm confused now. I thought that when I was passed out in your room he did something to change me. I know I didn't have these powers before I came here. Why would he want us? Why would he drop you guys here and me at his place? Wouldn't it make more sense to drop us all with him?" 

**Le Fae**

Everyone was talking at once...and the talking turned into shouting...everyone trying to make their questions be heard. The noise was unbearable...Wolverine, Sammi and Sabertooth all winced in pain. 

Xavier held up his hand...the room slowly quieted down...he cleared his throat and began again. 

"Please remain calm...All of your questions will be answered before this meeting is adjourned." He looked at Amanda...she nodded. He turned to address the room again. 

"We believe that Sinister entered your world, previous to your coming here. He tapped into your world's medical records, and discovered that each of you were perfect specimens for his experiment... his improved x-factor." 

"After locating our medical records," Amanda picked up where Charles left off, "He tracked each of us down, and injected us with his sinister x-factor." 

"What do you mean, injected us?" Jonas said angrily. "I have no recollection of Sinister coming to my home and injecting *me* with anything...if he had tried..." Jonas cut himself off. Sammi squeezed his hand tighter. 

Everyone knew how much Jonas hated needles. They all wondered just how Sinister had managed to pull something like this off. None of them remembered anything of the sort. Surely they wouldn't forget someone like Sinister giving them a shot. 

**_

~Sinister's Island~

_**

Arac walked along for a while, following the subliminal instructions that were being fed into his brain by Anon. He walked up to the foot of a cliff; a door opened, and Arac entered. 

Almost immediately, Arac was tackled by two of Sinister's henchmen, who successfully knocked him out and dragged him into the main room of the hidden compound. They put him down on the floor in front of Sinister. Sinister smiled. 

"Anon, wake him..." ordered Sinister. 

Anon complied, ~Arac, awake, your Father wishes to meet you...~ she spoke in Arac's head. 

Arac's eyes opened...he focused on Sinister. "What's up, 'POP'." he said sarcastically. 

He sat up...but instead of getting to his feet like Sinister expected, Arac remained sitting on the floor, and placed both of his hands palms down on the floor. He wanted some answers, and he was going to get them, one way or the other. 

The floor around and under Arac's hands began to glow, and the glow spread outwards until it consumed the entire floor; then the glow began to spread up the walls of the room. Arac was infusing explosive energy into the compound just as he had the Blackbird. 

"Well, 'Pop', I want some answers...if I don't get them, I'm going to blow up your pad and everyone in it...so start talking." Arac said coldly. 

To Arac's surprise, however, Sinister only smiled. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Amanda could sense the confusion from the Avengers, X-men, and her team. She hadn't remembered the shot either until recently, when she had attempted to read Arac's mind. She had found herself linked to another's mind and Sinister. She then could remember the terror she felt when Sinister hovered over her and injected her with the needle. She shivered at the memory. 

"Believe me, he did." Amanda stated to Jonas. 

Jonas could tell by her face that she remembered the experience. He was suddenly glad he couldn't. So were the rest of Vision X. Xavier reached for hand as he continued. 

"Sinister is controlling Arac, and for some reason Amanda can link up with him. It's almost as if it were some design aspect." Xavier explained. 

In the corner, Sabertooth mumbled to Ryan, "Some way to talk to your girlfriend. And they have the nerve to call me heartless." 

Amanda grinned as she heard the comment. She had always liked Sabertooth and she knew that they would need his help. Even so, she decided that it might be wise to continue the meeting. Charles was glaring at Sabertooth in a rather Wolverine like matter. 

"I think Sinister wanted to use my telepathy as a way to ensure that we would find him when he was ready for his plan. That's why Arac chose now to escape, and we now have the answer to the puzzle. The only thing I don't know is, why now?" explained Amanda 

**A.C.**

Sammi was listening, and the more she heard the more she tried to rack her brain to figure out when Sinister injected her, but she couldn't. That was getting her mad, she was born with a photographic memory and she couldn't remember. Then she caught Amanda's memory of Sinister standing over her. And everything came back to her. 

She remembered being at home sleeping, and then someone placing their hand over her mouth very hard. She looked at that face and tried to scream but she couldn't. She felt the first prick and she struggled hard, and then she couldn't move at all. She was paralyzed. That's when he removed his hand. She could only stare at him. If she could have moved she would have puked. 

That evil white face with the black diamond on the forehead and that evil grin. That's when he spoke. "You my dear, will be the best. The one that no one will be able to defeat. All my new children will be the best but I have special plans for you, my daughter." 

That's when she saw the other needle and her eyes widened with fear. She remembered that she kept thinking, /This is just a nightmare. I'm going to wake up soon. He isn't real. He's just a bloody comic book villain./ Then she felt the second prick and knew it wasn't a dream. /Oh, bright lady, the pain./ 

The searing red hot pain as what ever it was he was injecting into her coursed thru her veins. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

In the war room, Sammi closed her eyes to fight the tears. Sabertooth across the room was watching her. He could tell by the look on her face that she was probably the one that Sinister was talking about. She was probably the one that was going to kill the X-Men. He saw the tears roll down her face, he could smell them clear across the room and he saw Logan turn to her and ask her what was wrong. 

Sammi had her eyes closed and was trying to get rid of the memory, but she was failing. She felt a tear escape, but she didn't have the strength to wipe it away. She heard Logan ask,"Are you alright, darlin'?" When she didn't answer he moved to put his arm around her. She violently shrugged it off. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" She yelled but she was still sitting. When she realized what she did she opened her eyes to see everyone staring at her. 

She started crying and saying,"I'm sorry.", over and over again. Jonas had his arms around her and was rocking her back and forth. Jamar was rubbing her back and they were both trying to reassure her that everything was fine. Sammi couldn't speak. She wanted to tell them what she remembered but she couldn't, the memory was too painful. She was really glad Jonas didn't remember It would probably make him blow. 

She could hear everyone asking her what was wrong and she felt Xavier, Amanda and Jean trying to get to her mentally, but she kept her shields up on high. She didn't want anyone to see her that weak, ever. She forced herself to stop crying and she moved from Jonas's hug and turned to face everyone. She saw the pity and worry in their eyes, even Ryan. Sabertooth was looking at her as if he knew what she want through, but that didn't matter. 

She looked at the professor and Amanda and said," I'm sorry. I just remembered what that bastard did to me." She looked down when she was done. 

She turned and looked at Logan and saw the same look in his eyes as Creed had, but his was different. Logan looked at her and understood why she yelled and said,"Its alright, darlin'. I know what it's like." He moved to hug her again and this time she let him. 

After a few moments of quiet, Xavier spoke again. "We don't know the Why, and How he got to all of you in your homeworld." He started to say but Sammi cut him off. 

"He's using Gateway. I saw him in the corner when Sinister injected me. I know Sinister is forcing him, because he had such a sad look on his face. I think he's the one that dropped us at the mansion, to get all of you to help us. I know that when Sinister injected me he was talking about his plan, no wait, He wasn't talking he was gloating. I think he thought I wouldn't remember, but I do. I know I do. I have a photographic memory. I just can't remember it all right now. I can't get passed the pain of the injection, but I have to and soon if we're going to stop him." She said in a voice that held no emotion. 

The more Logan listened to her, the more he was afraid for her, for them all, but what scared him the most was her face. There was no emotion at all, not even in her eyes. She was just staring straight ahead like she was looking through the wall. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Sinister looked down at Arac, smiling an evil smile...things were working out better then he had planned. This young man was free from any morals or fear...he was angry, and had reached his maximum potential...his maximum powers...and he wasn't afraid to use them. He was ready. And so were the others. All they needed now was a reason to come to him. 

"Anon, go to work..." Sinister said to the mysterious cloaked figure. 

Anon walked over to Arac, and knelt down in front of him; she removed her mask to where only he could see her face, and her eyes. Arac stared curiously into her eyes for a moment...then suddenly, he felt himself begin to turn cold. He had no control over his powers...Anon was now in control...the glow in the room slowly faded away. 

Arac felt himself turn colder...he couldn't look away from those eyes...those silver, glowing eyes... his hands felt stiff, he couldn't move. For the first time in his existance, Arac felt fear. 

Arac suddenly threw back his head and let out a terrible scream which echoed throughout the room; then the scream was cut short as Arac finished...turning into Stone. He had become a living statue...one who would sleep until Sinister felt it was time to wake him. 

Anon smiled at her handiwork...then she put her mask back on. 

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Amanda had been telepathically connected to Arac, trying to find out more information...she suddenly clutched her head in terrible pain and fell to the floor. She had felt Arac turn to stone. 

At the same time, Cara let out a terrible scream, and fell to her knees, doubled over in pain... horrified, she looked at her right hand; it had turned into stone. She was still connected to Arac... what happened to him, would eventually happen to her, only at a slower rate. She herself was turning into stone. 

Sammi shook herself out of her trance, looked at Cara and gasped. She had felt what Amanda had felt...She knew what it meant...knew what had happened. Sammi also knew that if they didn't find Sinister's lair and turn Arac back soon, there would be no hope for Cara. 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Sinister smiled as his henchmen put Arac in a corner of the room. Anon had monitored the situation at the mansion, and told him what had occurred. It was only a matter of time before he had them all. 

***** 

**_~Backflash~_**

Sinister had traveled to Alpha Earth in search of perfect specimens for his experiment...those special few who would become his new breed of supermutants...his Children. He had brought Anon with him to help him complete his plan. She had been the one to freeze them, making it possible for him to inject each subject with his x-factor. After he was through, he had her suppress their memories. 

When he had found Cara, Anon had told him of her hidden rage...all of the fear and anger that she had suppressed through the years, wound tightly within her. 

Cara's rage would eventually erupt, canceling all safety precautions that she had built up through the years...it would help her reach her true destructive potential faster than the others. Her blind, animalistic rage would also make her more susceptible to Anon's urging...she would be the one to lead the others back to him. 

Sinister had Anon implant the homing signal in Cara's mind, and give her rage an extra boost as well. The sooner she erupted, the sooner she would be ready...and the sooner the others would be ready as well. Every one of Sinister's subjects were connected to each other, like a chain...what affected one would eventually affect the others. When one developed their full potential, the others would follow. 

At the first battle between Ryan and Cara, Ryan's power had amplified Cara's rage and given her a dual personality; the rage in the dual personality developed even faster, and when Arac split from Cara, Sinister knew they were ready. He had Anon activate the homing signal. 

***** 

Sinister smiled an evil smile as he thought of his plan...it was working well. He had sent Vision-X to the mansion so they could get the training they needed...and so they could lull the X-Men into a false sense of security. It would hurt them all the more when they were betrayed by Sinister's perfect time bomb...Sammi. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Sammi was up in a moment and right next to Cara. "Cara, you have to calm down, or its gonna go faster." 

"Ok. I'll try." Cara squeaked through the pain. 

"How did you know that, Darlin'." Logan asked as everyone that was the closest came to Cara's side. 

"I don't know. I just did." Sammi was a little stunned. She didn't know how she knew, she just did. Then she got another flash of that night when Sinister injected her. This one was of a girl in a dark cloak and her face was covered by a mask. 

Sammi snapped out of it and said,"Anon." 

"Who?" Everyone asked. 

"Anon. She's Sinister's first, but she's not like us. He made her in his lab. She wears a mask because she like Medusa." Sammi said still trying to figure out how she knew all of that. 

"Who's Medusa?" Jubilee asked. 

Sammi looked up to her and said," I can't remember what myth she is from, it might be Hercules or Sinbad, anyway if you look at her eyes she can turn you to living stone. You sleep in that form until she wants to wake you up." She looked at Cara and said," She just turned Arac in to stone, and Cara is still connected to him so she's turning to stone, too, but at a slower rate. We have to find Sinister and change Arac back or we're never gonna save either of them." 

Cara was looking at her and nodded,"I know," was all she said. 

**jubilee_79**

Ryan ran to Cara's side and grabbed her hand. She slowly focused her powers to see if she could morph the stone back into flesh. She tried her best but the hand stayed the same color. It did have a fleshier feel to it and Cara could move her fingers a little. 

"That's the best I could do. It's not much but it will make do until we can get to your double." 

Ryan moved over to Athena and looked into the girl's eyes. She could tell that she was scared and this was not helping her heart any. "I don't feel so good." Athena said falling a little more into Bobby's arms. 

"I think we should take you back to the lab" He said looking concerned. 

"No I want to stay until the meeting finishes. I'll be ok, just don't let me go." 

Ryan once again felt completely helpless. Her friends were hurting and angry and she couldn't stop their pain. 

**Le Fae**

Athena stared at the room's occupants confusedly. She certainly couldn't remember any injection. That didn't surprise her, because Sinister wouldn't want them to remember. 

/He must have done something to force us to forget. What does surprise me is that he would have thought me a perfect specimen for anything./ Athena thought. 

Athena knew for a fact that her medical records held enough information about her heart condition to fill a book. She had it since birth, the affects of her mother taking illegal drugs. 

/Crack does ugly things to an unborn baby. Sinister had to have known, so why did he still inject me?/ She thought, /Surely he knew that would limit my abilities. Does Sinister make mistakes?/ 

**snowbaby**

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon was monitoring the meeting at Xavier's mansion...she smiled as she caught Athena's thought. 

/Ah, Athena...don't you realize that you hold the key? Sinister doesn't make mistakes...he has a special plan for you./ Anon thought. 

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Amanda sat up and got to her feet...Charles helped her. He looked at her questioningly. 

(I am alright, Charles...) Amanda spoke telepathically, (but I am worried about Athena...I caught a thought from Anon, and I have no idea what it meant...She said that Athena holds the key, but the key to what?) 

Charles furrowed his brow, he didn't know what it meant either...that worried him. 

Across the room, Beast helped Cara up into a chair; he sat with Cara and Athena on either side of him so he could monitor both of them. 

Cara smiled at both Sammi and Ryan, "Thanks you guys." she said. She tried to make it seem that nothing was wrong, but in her eyes were shadows of pain and fear. 

Beast saw that she was afraid, and wrapped one arm around her shoulder...she snuggled into Beast and hid her face in his shoulder. 

**Rainfall**

Athena looked over at Cara on the other side of Hank. She reached around and grabbed her hand. 

"Everything will be all right Cara, we'll all help each other get through this. That's what family does. We'll all make it, because we care enough about each other to stand together." Athena comforted,.then squeezed Bobby tighter. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Sinister looked at them all. Sammi, Cara, Ryan, Athena, Jamar, Teb, Maria, Leilee, and Amanda all of them had surpassed his every expectation. 

With the exception of one, Jonas... well, one failure out of 10 produced was not bad... besides, he now had Arac to compensate. 

"Anon, Jonas is unimportant." Sinister stood up. "Dispose of him." He paused and thought of how it would affect Sammi, "Let it take some time." 

Jonas was only strong, invulnerable, and capable of flight... he was uncreative, there were people far stronger then him that had his capabilities. 

And his Dragon form was maybe visually pleasing but also useless as a super weapon, and also unsuitable as a breeding stock... termination was the only logical alternative. 

Anon looked in to Jonas mind... 

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Jonas twitched... there was something in his mind, and suddenly something was terribly wrong, he could not place it. 

He turned to say something to Amanda, maybe it was she who did it. 

"....." Nothing he could not speak... he realized what it was that was wrong and panicked! 

He could not breathe!!! 

He grabbed his neck and his eyes grew wide... Sammi was yelling something. But he could not hear it over the beating of his heart. He spun around and panicked, throwing his arms around. 

Thor grabbed him but was having trouble holding him... but his struggles quickly subsided and he slid lower and lower, until he was on his back on the floor. 

Someone was giving him mouth to mouth... there was a lot of yelling... but his fogged mind could only see Sammi... he could not hear her. 

But he could see the tears, and he could feel his own, with his last strength he grabbed Sammi by the neck pulling her down, grasping the necklace around his neck and pulled it off... he placed it in her hand and closed it. 

His body arced and he heard his heart stop... the world faded away. 

He died... 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon mused, it was too quick but she had savored the death... still she was disappointed that his mind died so quickly, almost as if it was drawn away from him... She did not concern herself with that now... the programmed termination that they all had, worked... one wrong move from any of them and they would die just as easily. 

**Admiral**

**_

~X-Mansion, War Room~

_**

Bobby quickly lifted Athena up and ran out of the room. He knew it would be too much for her to take. She was already screaming and crying hysterically. He knew he had to get her out and calm her down. He didn't stop until they got to his room. He didn't take her to the medlab because he knew they would take Jonas there. He didn't want her to see that. He sat her down on his bed. 

She stopped screaming and said, "Bobby, he's my friend. He didn't give up on me and I won't give up on him." 

At that she tried to make a run for the hall, but her legs failed her and she fell into Bobby's arms. "Let me go!" she protested. "Bobby-bear, if you don't let me go, I'll...I'll..." 

"You'll what?" Bobby taunted. 

"I'll tell Hank about what happened in the medlab last night!" Athena cried. 

Bobby laughed at her and said "Go ahead, he's my best friend. He would probably stand and cheer!" Then he realized how hurtful that sounded and pulled her close to him. "There is nothing you can do. Let the others do what they can and hope for the best. You have to calm down or they are going to be trying to save you again. I can't lose you." 

Bobby hugged her close while she cried herself to sleep. 

After Athena went to sleep, Bobby covered her up and went down stairs. He went straight to the medlab. He knew deep down that Jonas was gone and he wanted to offer condolences to Vision X. He knew Sammi must be crushed. He remembered how he had felt when Athena had died. 

He was angry at the world. He thought he could at least lend a sympathetic shoulder to cry on. He also wanted to talk to Hank about Athena. She was certainly not going to take this well. He thought he might ask Hank to sedate her in order to keep her heart in check. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Amanda pulled Xavier away from the med-lab where Hank was trying to control both Rogue and Sammi. Though Amanda wanted to comfort Sammi, she had to remain focused. Right now the whole team wanted vengeance, but Amanda feared that was what Sinister wanted. She was also concerned about the stray thought she picked up from Sabertooth. 

"Did Sinister do this?" questioned Charles when they were alone. 

"I'm not sure. I think so. I don't think Jonas was living up to Sinister's hopes." 

"If Sinister can kill one of you, then that means..." 

"I know, Charles, but I don't think he'll be the one to eliminate us." 

"What do you mean?" Charles frowned. 

"I picked up a stray thought from Sabertooth saying that one of us was going to kill the X-men. I think it might end up being one of my team." Explained Amanda. 

"I think I understand what you are saying. With Jonas' death, the rest of you are vulnerable to an attack or any programing that Sinister created." 

"Sinister gave us these powers for a reason. The fact that I'm connected to his monsters should prove that we are dangerous to the X-men and anyone else." 

"What are you saying, Amanda?" asked Charles. 

"After we have a small service, I'm taking Vision X and we're going to face Sinister... Alone." 

"Over my dead body! I am not going to let you go up against a madman like that alone. You could all die!" exclaimed Xavier. 

Amanda smiled sadly at him. She knew that he wanted to protect her. She also knew that she would be as devastated as Sammi if something happened to him. She took his hand. 

"Charles, Jonas was one of us. He was the spirit of this team. We won't be together without his help. He was under my protection and I failed him. I won't fail anyone else. I will not let Sinister use my team for his pawns. It's time we faced him. I'm taking the fight to him and he is going to pay for what he did, but it's our fight. Vision X has to do this. Don't make this anymore difficult then it already is." She pleaded to him with her eyes for understanding. 

Charles smile was sad as he replied, "I understand. I'll inform the X-men of you're decision. They won't be happy, but I think they understand." 

"Good," she said as she head to the war room," One more thing, tell Sammi that I won't fail Jonas again. Sinister will pay fully for this. I'll see to it personally. Also, tell her his last thought was for her." 

Amanda left Charles where he stood. Amanda vowed that no one else would die under her charge. She would stop Sinister personally. She may be calm on the outside, but inside she was boiling. Sinister was dead, she would see to it. That was if Sammi didn't kill him first. 

Amanda was not going to let Sammi deal with the consequences of killing anyone. She was too nice a person to live with that. She knew Jonas would not want that act to destroy her. She would let Sammi have her go at Sinister, but she would not let her kill the man or anyone else. No one was going to use Vision X anymore. 

**A.C.**


	19. Reality Bites-Part 19

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel Comics. All Non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 19

**

**_~A Mysterious Void~_**

"Did you fear death?" a rumbling voice said low through the void of complete darkness. 

Whoever said it didn't get an answer. 

"You will answer me!" the voice said again, now more commanding. 

Still no answer. 

There was a deep sigh. 

"We both share this void... you are dead, you have nothing to fear anymore." the voice said, now more tender. 

"Who are you?" As he said it, Jonas' mind flung open. 

"Where am I?" he said next, not stopping to get an answer for his first query. 

"This is the place where we wait." the unknown voice said. "I am Azmaru, it's a little incorrect told in your tongue, but your voice is limited." 

"Do I know you?" Jonas asked, still uncertain about it all. 

"No. I, however, know you well... and in part, it's my fault that we are here." Azmaru said in a sad tone. 

It was quiet for a moment... 

"No, I was not afraid of death, but I fear what comes after." Jonas said. 

"Do not fear just yet, bonded one. Your time is far from over..." 

"We have been waiting for you... and you have been waiting for us." 

**Admiral**

**_~X-Mansion, Medlab~_**

Hank was trying to hold both Sammi and Rogue back and when that wasn't working Logan came to help. He grabbed Sammi arms from behind and held them. 

"LET ME GO!!! NOW!!!" She screamed and started kicking being that she couldn't move her arms. 

Ryan was watching the scene in front of her. She knew that if that was Victor she would be the same way. She held his hand tighter as she thought about it. She looked up to him and said,"Can you help them? Please?" 

Sabertooth looked at her. He couldn't believe what she was asking, help the runt and his cub, but he remembered what it was like to watch someone you loved die in front of you, so he went to help. He went to grab a hold of Sammi, but she wouldn't have it. 

"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH ME!!!!!!!"She screamed as she kicked him in a very sensitive spot. 

She broke free of Logan's hold as he was stunned by what she did and walked over to Jonas's body. She opened her hand and looked at the necklace and put it on. She leaned down and kissed Jonas's lips and said,"I'm gonna kill that f***ing bastard. I promise. I'll see you soon, my love." 

She turned and saw Gambit, Leilee and Cara starting towards her. She looked at them and growled," If anyone even tries to stop me again, they are going to get worse than that." She said as she pointed at Sabertooth on the floor in pain. 

She had to get out of there. She was about to explode, but she didn't want to hurt anyone in the room. Then she thought of the Danger Room. 

She looked at Jubilee and said," I need your help." 

Jubilee nodded, but didn't say anything. She knew what Logan was like after Mariko died, so she was willing to help her in any way possible. Jubilee followed Sammi towards the door but they were blocked by the professor. He saw the look on Sammi's face and caught her thought of the Danger Room and moved to the side. 

"His last thought was of you." He said as Sammi passed him. She didn't look at him. 

"And mine will be of him." Was all she said as she walked down the hall. Jubilee followed her not saying a word. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan started to go after them, but the professor stopped him. "She's only going to the Danger Room. She needed Jubilee to activate the programs for her that is all." He said looking at Logan. Then he looked at the other X-Men and said, "I need the X-Men only in the War room now. I need to talk to you all." He headed to the war room. 

**_~Outside the Danger Room~_**

Sammi stopped and looked at Jubilee. "Open the door and then go up to the control booth. If their is a program with Sinister I want that one. Do you have any music that I can use as background?" 

Jubilee looked at her. "Sure. What kind?" She punched in her code and the door opened. 

"Any kind of hard rock or preferably techno rock." Sammi said thinking, "Do you have the Matrix soundtrack?" 

"Yeah, I was using it earlier. Do you want me to start off with Du Hast?" Jubilee asked knowing that was the best song to blow things up to. 

"Yeah, then start at the beginning." Sammi said as she entered the room and the door slid closed behind her. 

Sammi stood just inside the door. She had her head down and concentrating on moving the anger and the pain throughout her body to give strength. 

She saw the lights come up and heard Jubilee's voice over the speaker, "Are you ready?" She asked. 

She saw Sammi pick up her head and nod. "Crank it up loud. I want to feel it." 

Jubilee pressed the volume control and heard the first synthetic guitar strings and she heard Sammi yell, "PUNCH IT, LEE!! FULL POWER!!!!" Jubilee started the program and tuned the level up to seven. That was Logan's level and the program was set up to move up a level the farther you went. 

Sammi saw the room change into an opening in front of a building. Out of the building came a few of Sinister's henchmen. Two of them attacked her and she got through them easily without using her claws or pyrotechnics. She moved quickly passed the ones that were guarding the door. 

She started to walk through the corridors that were set up and easily getting passed anyone who stood in her way. By the time she reached the center of the maze she had her claws out and ready. She entered the door to show a laboratory set up, and right in the middle was Sinister. He turned and grinned at her. She walked slowly up to him and gave him a few 'nice' words and slashed him across his chest. She saw him bleed and then regenerate himself. 

/Just like I like it./ She thought. 

She knew if it was over too soon she would never get the anger out and then she would have to really go after him and kill him. She also knew that she had to get this out of her system or she would be acting just like HE wanted, and she wouldn't give him the satisfaction 

She was thinking in the back of her mind all that she remembered and that had happened. She knew that Anon had to have been the one that killed Jonas, and if she could do that from where she was, there had to be some sort of device in them all. A device that could kill them all with just a thought from her. 

Sammi knew that she would need Hank's lab and his help if she was going to find it and disable it before they went after Sinister. She had to get the ball out of his court to level the playing field, and that was just the way to do it. 

The Sinister in the Danger Room advanced on her, and she dodged him and returned with her claws into his side in an advanced kidney shot. He went down. 

She stepped back and yelled," Get up, you filthy Penny-wise reject!!!" 

As he slowly started to rise, she was on her guard and charged her pyrotechnics as high as they would go. When he was standing , he looked at her and smiled. 

She looked at him and yelled, "THIS IS FOR JONAS!!! YOU F***ING BASTARD!!!!!!!" And she brought her hands up and fired. 

**_~The Control Room~_**

Logan, who came in a little after Sammi started, and Jubilee heard her yell and saw her raise her hands and saw the largest fire blast that they had ever seen. Logan grabbed Jubilee down to the floor just in time, as the blast smashed the windows and fried most of the equipment. The explosion shook the whole house. When they heard the sprinklers start, they got up to survey the damage. 

Two of the computers were fried and the rest had stopped as the water started to fall. They moved over to the window to see the smoke clearing and saw Sammi standing in the middle of the destroyed room. She wasn't hurt. But she had her head down and was crying. She sank to her knees and continued to cry. Logan and Jubilee just watched because they knew she needed to get it out. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Med Lab, Later~_**

Rogue looked at Jonas' lifeless body, her mind in chaos... she remembered things that she had absorbed from him. All that had happened to him and he had beaten it all, only to be murdered. 

"It's not fair." she said low, and pulled the sheet back over Jonas head. 

"Life is rarely fair darlin'." Logan said placing his hand on her shoulder. 

Rogue shook it off. "Ah don't need ya pity right now, Sinister killed him for no reason... he didn't even get to fight back." 

"Thou are correct, this is no way for a brave warrior to leave." Thor said and walked in. 

Thor walked over and put a hand on Jonas chest. "This foul villain will truly feel my wrath." 

"How is Sammi handling it?" Rogue asked and looked away hiding her tears. 

Logan looked at Thor whispering some strange words that he didn't understand. "Bobby is trying to talk to her." He paused. 

"As expected, everyone is rather taken back... it was rather unexpected." 

Thor started to walk out. 

"What was that all about?" Logan asked. 

"I hast made a promise... one I intend to keep." Thor said, his eyes cold. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After the explosion in the Danger Room, Logan went to the med lab and Jubilee took Sammi to her room. 

"Why don't you take a nice hot shower and get some sleep. I'm going to get you some of Storm's calming tea." Jubilee said as she led Sammi to the bathroom. 

"Ok." Sammi said as she walked into the bathroom. 

She looked in the mirror and saw Jonas's necklace around her neck and she started to cry again. 

"It not fair.", was all she said over and over again. 

She turned and went into her, their room. She sat on her bed and looked at his bed. Then there was a knock at the door. She couldn't speak, she just kept staring at his bed and cried. She heard the door open and someone walk in. She knew the person was standing next to her but they didn't say a word. 

"He should be there." She said still looking at the bed. 

"Yeah, I know." The person said. When the person spoke she knew it was Bobby. 

"How's Athena?" She asked not moving. 

"She's doing better. I asked Hank to sedate her so she would relax and fully heal. How are you?" Bobby asked. He knew she was trying to change the subject but he wasn't going to let her. 

"I'm fine. The first man I really loved is dead. but I'm fine." She said sarcastically. "Yeah, I know what you mean. I wanted to die too when Athena did. I know how it feels. Can I sit?" 

"Sure. I keep trying to figure out what I did that was so wrong." She said slowly turning towards him. 

"What do you mean? You didn't do anything. You couldn't have done anything." He said putting his arm around her. 

"I mean, why am I being punished. First my parents, then Jamar, now Jonas. Why is everyone I love get taken away from me?" She said leaning on his shoulder. 

"I don't know. I don't think anyone really knows. We are only left to question why. And that's what sucks the big one." 

"Did you know that my mother died, looking at me, just like Jonas. Both of them, she held my hand and said I love you and died. Jonas put his necklace in my hand and I could tell by the look in his eyes that he was telling me how much he loved me." She said as Bobby started to rock her. 

"I didn't know that. I was only told that you were literally like Jubes. How did your parents die?" Bobby asked putting his other arm around her hugging her. 

"A car crash. I was in the car. I was only 7 years old. My mom was driving and it was a very bad thunder storm, lightning took out a tree near us and it fell on the car. I fell on the floor behind the passenger seat and I called out to her. She turned her head, held out her hand and when I grabbed onto it, she said she loved me and then her eyes closed. I heard the doctors say that my dad died instantly. I was found passed out still holding her hand." 

"Wow. I'm sorry. That has to be rough for a little kid to deal with. But look at how you turned out. Your the strongest person I have ever met. Your the one that pushed Wolverine out of the way and took Creed's claws in the spine and the brain and you survived. You're a fighter." 

"Yeah, and you're an accountant." Sammi said dryly. "I don't feel like a fighter. I feel so weak right now and no one really knows how to deal with me, so I'm all alone. Well, no one except for you. Thanks." Sammi said lifting her head to look him in the eyes. "You have alot of strength too. Thanks for being here." 

"Thanks, but you sound like I'm leaving. I'm not. I'm going to stay here until you are better, well, as good as you can get." He said drying a few of her tears with his thumb. "Now you need rest. How about you go get changed and go to bed?" 

"Ok. I want to sleep in his bed tonight. To still be close to him, ya know. So you can have my bed." Sammi said went into the bathroom. 

She got changed and came out to find Bobby in her bed watching her. She laid down on Jonas's bed and pulled the cover up. She could still smell him, that gave her a little comfort, the fact that he was still with her in a way. She fell asleep and ended up dreaming about their first kiss, and when He took her to the Empire state building and when they talked outside by the tree. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~The Mysterious Void~_**

"What do you mean... Am I dead, or am I alive?" Jonas yelled out, trying to grasp anything. 

"Neither... Both, we have never done this with a human." a new voice came through the void. 

Jonas started to get scared. Where was he? What happened to him... Sammi! what about Sammi? 

"Will I be able to go back?" Jonas asked, he could not imagine what Sammi would be going through right now. 

"No..." the voice said, sadness filling it's low rumble. "You are not bonded to a body." 

"There must be a way!" Jonas yelled out in desperation, he could not live in this void. 

"Maybe..." a new voice said. 

Jonas world erupted in pain... but only for a moment. 

The void was gone, replaced by a large room of gold and silver. It was beautiful and he was stunned for a moment, marveling at the sight. 

Suddenly something grabbed him... a large hand. 

"We have bonded you to a life crystal." this time he could see who, or what it was... it was a Dragon!! 

"I could turn into one of you... that is what this is about?" Jonas said, scared out of his mind. 

"Yes, you were bonded with one of us on the day you were born, but never has any human raised himself to BECOME a dragon." 

Jonas wanted to do something, but it was as if he was only dreaming. He could not feel anything. 

"Your body died, and your protector could not save it... so he in desperation ripped out your soul and took it here." 

"My protector?" Jonas said and looked around, when he realized that he was aware of everything around him. 

"Yes... Azmaru." Another Dragon stepped into view. 

"I failed you... I could not let you cease to exist... I have served you every day of your life, you have given meaning to my existence." 

Jonas looked at the Dragon face in front of him. 

"and when I was needed the most... I was distracted." 

"You can't exist like this for a long time, we must find a new and permanent host for your soul." 

"If you can, will I be able to go back?" Jonas asked, his only thought was of Sammi. 

"Yes, but you will no longer be like you were before, we will not know how it will turn out before it is complete." 

"You could become powerful beyond your imagination," the first Dragon said. 

Azmaru looked at him. "Or cease to exist, banished to the void forever." 

**Admiral**

**_~X-Mansion, Bobby's Room~_**

Athena opened her eyes, the room was dark and she was alone. She could barely keep her eyes open. 

/I'm going to kill Bobby for having Hank do this,/ she thought. 

She was so sleepy. She started to cry as she thought of Jonas and Sammi. She cried harder when her eyes came open again and she once again saw the dark. Then the door opened and a lamp came on. She looked up expecting to see Bobby or Hank. She was surprised to find Paige. 

"What's the matta?" Paige asked sweetly. 

"I'm feeling so bad about Jonas, I'm sleepy, and I'm afraid of the dark." Athena sobbed softly. 

Paige patted her hand and said "It's o-kay, I'll stay here with you." 

She pulled the covers up around Athena, turned off the lamp and lay down next to her. Feeling safe once again, Athena let the sedative Hank had given her take over. 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan winced as Sabertooth shot her a harsh look. The two were still in the med lab tending to Victors injury that Sammi had given him. 

"I'm sorry Scooby." Ryan said in a meek voice. It was her fault that he was hurt. If she hadn't asked him to help then it wouldn't have happened. 

"You know she could have permanently hurt something you're going need later." Victor said to her a little icily. He knew she meant well when she asked him to help, but, boy did it hurt. 

Ryan suddenly grinned manically "Do you want me to kiss it and make it better?" 

"You're gonna do more then just kiss it, frail." Sabertooth ginned back at her playing out all the things in his mind that he was going to make her do to make it better. 

"Please, for my own sanity could you refrain from doing that in here?" Hank suddenly said looking a little green. 

"You get some rest Scooby, I'm going to check on everyone." 

Ryan wanted to make it up to Victor but she was worried about everyone right now. She wanted to check on Athena, Sammi and Cara. They seemed to take the worst of the tragedy. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After Jonas died, Cara ran out of the War Room, and ran outside...she was terrified, and very upset. How could this happen? She remembered Jonas standing over Athena when she was dead... could remember him telling Athena that they didn't come here to die... but now, Jonas was dead. 

Cara was running...she didn't know where she was going...she was just running. She had to get away! She ran through the forest...low branches hit her face and body, stinging and whipping her as she ran...it was dark and she couldn't see clearly, tears were blinding her eyes worse than the darkness. 

Cara didn't realize it, but she had reached the end of the forest... on the other side was the cliff, and below that, an angry sea. 

Cara saw the edge of the cliff, and tried to stop... but she was going too fast. She tripped on rock and plunged head-first over the edge of the cliff. 

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Cara screamed as she fell. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

A sonic boom broke through the air as Cara fell...she heard a scream or a shout...it was very long and it was coming closer to where she was falling. Cara could hear her own heartbeat...beating, beating, no time to breathe...Cara hit her head on a rock and blacked out. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!" Maria screamed her sonic shout as she came flying through the air. She had to reach Cara before she hit the water. 

Faster and faster, she pushed herself to the limit. 

Faster and faster, Cara went spinning through the air, heading straight for the angry water which crashed against the jagged rocks below. 

Maria pulled her arms even tighter to her body, trying to make herself even more aerodynamic as she plunged head-first over the cliff after Cara...she could hear her own heartbeat over her scream... beating, beating, no time to breathe. Could she make it? She had to!!! 

Maria urged herself to go faster...pushed herself beyond her known limits...the air screamed as Maria cut through. 

Maria reached Cara and grabbed her, just as Cara was about to crash on the jagged rocks...Maria quickly altered course, bringing them both up, up, past the top of the cliff. Maria saw that Cara was injured and decided not to stop. She took off toward the mansion, letting her sonic scream carry them over the trees that Cara had run through earlier. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The mansion was rocked with a sonic boom, everyone looked up from what they were doing, wondering what had happened. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria screamed her way through the long corridors of the mansion, and made her way to the medlab. She stopped screaming and set down upon the ground. Beast was surprised, as well as Ryan and Sabertooth, but Beast saw that Cara was injured and hustled over to take Cara from Maria. He placed Cara on a table and began to look at the damage done to her head. He also noticed that her whole right arm had turned to stone. 

Maria stood in the doorway, her face was pale with shock. She just realized what she had done...she had flown, at breakneck speed, over the side of a cliff. Maria was terrified of heights, she remembered telling Sean Cassidy that she would never fly. Maria's face grew paler, and her eyes took on a blank expression. Maria fainted dead away. 

Beast looked over, shook his head, and walked over to where Maria lay...he picked her up and laid her on a table. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cap shook Xavier's hand. "I wish there was something we could have done." 

"The last thing you should do is to blame yourself." Xavier said and looked sad. 

"If you would like, I will see to it that the Avengers are ready to respond, if your current plan is a failure." Captain America said, and let go. 

"I hope it will not be necessary, but I do appreciate it." Xavier looked to the horizon. 

Iron man came up behind. "Cap, we are ready to go." 

"Well, I wish I could have stayed for the service... he was an interesting young man, but given the situation you do understand my hasty retreat?" Cap asked. 

"Of course, I will see to that they are informed." Xavier nodded. 

Captain America saw Thor come walking. "Thor we are leaving." 

Thor stopped behind Xavier. "Yes thy are... I will stay, I will see to that this villain does not harm anyone again." 

Thor gave Cap a *Dare try and move me* look. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Let my body be the host!" a rumbling voice shot out and caught all the gathered Dragons off guard. 

"Thanagad, you have no right to set foot in the hall of the ancient!" An almost completely black Dragon roared. 

Jonas was now even more confused. 

"You are a guardian, you defile this sacred..." The newcomer cut the black Dragon off. 

"Silence, Ramagar, I know more about the ancient chronicles then the readers themselves." the Dragon known as Thanagad roared back. 

There was a stand still... 

"The Chronicles may be wrong, we can't be sure that this Is the one." Ramagar said pointing at the crystal that held Jonas' soul. 

Azmaru stepped forward and lowered Ramagar's arm. "No... Thanagad is right." 

The black dragon's only eye was glowing red. "If he bonds to Thanagad..." he paused. "You would both go to the ancient." 

"It cannot be helped, he must have a powerful host... you will find no one more powerful then me." Thanagad said, and noone said otherwise. 

"Ramagar, we are dying as it is, let us leave you with pride, knowing that the prophecy was fulfilled... that I did not waste my life." 

Ramagar looked sad and put a big hand on Azmaru's shoulder, I will miss you brother... keep a spot for me on the hunting ground." 

He then looked at Thanagad. "You know that you might not have a place among your brothers... you might end up in the void." 

"I am sure they will find me worthy." Thanagad said, wounded. 

"What is going on? I mean, this is about me, right?... speak to me." Jonas demanded. 

"Azmaru, explain to the human, we will prepare the ceremony." Ramagar said. 

Jonas concentrated on Azmaru; it was hard as he, from inside the life crystal, had 360-degree vision. 

"Long ago, when we all shared the same world, Human and Dragon... The Ancient shared their great wisdom with a group of humans, hoping to create a world of peace for all." 

Jonas listened... 

"And when the time was right, they bonded to the humans creating an alliance forged stronger then steel... but just as human gained wisdom and honor from dragons." 

Azmaru shook his head. "Some Dragons gained hate... Greed and lust for power. There was a war where Dragon fought Dragon... and to stop it, the ancient banished us here." 

"Now there are not many of us left, we are one with earth... we can't survive without it, and the old chronicles speak of a human not of this world that will bond to a dragon and return us home." 

Jonas started to worry. "And you think that it's me?" 

"Time doesn't affect us in this reality, but on your world several thousands of years have passed since we walked there." 

Ramagar came in, holding a new life crystal. "It is time." 

**Admiral**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Amanda had summoned Sammi a few minutes ago and was concerned that she wasn't going to show. She knew Sammi had spent a bit time in the danger room. Amanda thought about going there later herself. She was so angry she had chosen to come outside to avoid talking to anyone. She had plans to make. 

"You wanted to see me?" Asked Sammi as she stalked out of the woods. 

"Yes. I wish to discuss what we are going to do about Sinister." she answered. 

Amanda could see Sammi's eyes harden at the mention of his name. She now understood why Xavier was always concerned about Wolverine. 

"Before you go on a rampage," Amanda explained, "I want to talk. I know you're hurting and no, I have no idea what you're feeling." She stated this as she saw Sammi was about to lose it. 

"I told Xavier that we're going to take Sinister on ourselves. The X-men are not to be involved. Jonas was our teammate and we're the ones who will avenge his death." 

"I have no problem with that." Sammi replied. 

"I didn't think you would. I do have a problem with you. You are too much like Wolverine for your own good. Now you will understand this. I will let you have a go at Sinister. You can do what you like. You will NOT KILL HIM! Jonas would not want you to take a life and neither do I. If you cannot handle those conditions, you are staying here." stated Amanda. 

She could see the protest in Sammi's eyes and was prepared for a fight. She didn't know if her weaponry would be able to take Sammi down, but she couldn't back down. Suddenly, Sammi's eyes softened. 

"I remember the look in Jonas's eyes when he thought he almost killed someone. He wouldn't want me to know the feeling of actually killing someone." 

"No, he wouldn't. Now go tell the rest of the team. See if Cara and Maria are okay. Cara had a nasty scare." 

As Sammi headed towards her friends, Amanda felt a sense of pride in her team. They would make it through this. She also felt her heart break as she thought of Jonas. He had been like a brother the way he teased her. She knew he liked to push her buttons. He hadn't deserved what Sinister had done. 

She vowed that Sinister would pay for this with his life, she just wasn't going to let anyone else deal with murder on their hands. Amanda would take on that sin, just as she would forever have Jonas's death on her shoulders. She would not fail anyone else. Not Vision X. Not Charles. Not anyone. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

_***I wanna dedicate this part to my grandmother carol who died in January of 1999. She missed many important things of my life, and I will always miss her. When I was depressed, she was the one who gave me the kick in the pants I needed, ands I want to that her for making me the person I am today. I love you, Grandma. _

Stuff between // is song lyrics and stuff between :: is thought. Crucify is a song by Tori Amos on her super fab Little Earthquakes CD which I HIGHLY recommend. 

Oh. And Morgonian was my grandma's pet nickname for me.*** 

Leilee sat curled up on the bed with the door locked. She had run from the room soon after Jonas had died, thrown up and locked herself in her room. The stereo was turned up with serious angst music, namely Tori Amos, blaring out. 

//Every finger in the room was pointing at me  
I wanna spit in their faces  
Then I get afraid of what that could bring  
I got a bowling ball in my stomach  
I got a desert in my mouth  
Figures that my courage would choose to sell out now 

I've been looking for a savior in these dirty streets  
Looking for a savior beneath these dirty sheets  
I've been raising up my hands  
Drive another nail in  
Just what God needs  
One more victim 

Why do we Crucify ourselves?  
Every day  
I crucify myself  
and nothing I do is good enough for you  
I crucify myself  
Everyday  
I crucify myself  
And my heart is sick of being  
I said my heart is sick of being in  
chains...oh oh oh  
chains...oh oh oh// 

Leilee shivered as the room's temperature dropped suddenly. She shifted to sit up, and saw sitting on the edge of her bed the pale form of her Grandmother Carol. Normally, she'd have no problem with this, except that her grandmother had died in January of 1999. 

"....Grandma?" 

The pale form smiled warmly. "Hello Morgonian." 

Leilee's eyes widened in joy as she threw herself into her grandmothers arms, sobbing incoherently. "Ohg*dohg*dohg*dohg*dohg*dohg*d..." 

Her grandmother held her tightly and her supernatural clothing absorbed the tears. 

"Oh grandma.....I missed you so much." 

Her grandmother smiled softly. "I know." 

Suddenly, Leilee's face sobered. "Grandma...They killed Jonas." 

Her grandmother rubbed her back soothingly. "I know, honey. I know. It's ok...." 

"He was so....good. He was so nice. He didn't deserve to die. Why him?" 

"I don't know honey. But there is a reason why I am here. He didn't deserve to die. It's up to you and your team-mates to stop him. I know you can do it. You can stop him." 

Leilee smiled at her. "You know, I never realized how important you were and how much I needed you and loved you until you were gone. You were the one who always pushed me when I needed it. I cried for 3 months straight after you died." 

Her grandmother smiled. "I know. I love you too. Morgonian?" 

"Yeah Grandma?" 

"That man....Remy? He really loves you. And I approve wholeheartedly. Keep him. You both deserve to be happy. Take the chance before you leave." 

Leilee blushed and smiled. "Thanks Grandma. I love him too. I'll miss you." 

Her grandmother smiled. "I'll miss you too. Now give me a hug before I leave." And Leilee embraced her tightly until she felt her grandmother's form fade into nothingness. 

Sighing, Leilee pulled on her costume. And as she pulled it on, the song kept playing. 

//I've been looking for a savior  
in these dirty streets.  
I've been looking for a savior  
beneath these dirty sheets  
I've been raising up my hands  
Drive another nail in  
Where are those Angels when you need them?// 

::They're there giving you the kick in the ass when you need it.:: Leilee thought as she turned off the stereo and walked out the door. 

"Ok people!" she shouted. "LET'S GO KICK SINISTER'S ASS!" 

**Leilee**

**_~Medlab~_**

Cara woke up to feel someone smoothing her hair away from her forehead...she was tired, and she kept her eyes closed. 

She heard a man's voice saying, "Come on kid, you've got to pull through...we've got a date to play softball, remember?" 

Cara opened her eyes, and smiled into the concerned blue eyes of Jamie Madrox. "I call dibs on the me's, you have to be the you's." she said in a tired voice. She closed her eyes, and started to fall back asleep. 

Jamie smiled a little...the kid had spunk, he had to give her that...but she didn't look like she was going to be playing softball anytime soon. 

Just then, they both heard a shout from Leilee, echoing in from the hallway. 

"OKAY PEOPLE! LET'S GO KICK SINISTER'S ASS!" 

Cara's eyes immediately sprang open.../What am I doing...I can't go to sleep when we've got work to do...I've got to shake this off, and get out of here!/ she thought to herself, as she struggled into a sitting position. 

"What are you doing, Cara, you can't get out of bed...you've been badly injured...lay back down or I'm going to get Hank to sedate you." Jamie said gruffly. He tried to push Cara back down on the bed...she began to struggle. 

"LEILEE, SOMEBODY, HELP!" she shouted. She didn't want to stay in the medlab, she wanted to go with Leilee and the others...she knew she had to if she was going to survive. 

**Rainfall**

Sammi and Amanda walked in to the room as Cara screamed. Sammi looked at the situation, and tried not to laugh, because Jamie was trying to hold Cara down with all of his might, but Cara was fighting back with minimal effort. She had to say something. 

"Jamie, If you want to wrestle, can you wait til were done with Sinister?" Sammi said with a half smile. 

Jamie turned stunned by the voice. "She needs rest. She can't fight." 

"I assure you, she can fight and she needs to. Do you see her arm?" Sammi said as Jamie looked at Cara's arm that was turning to stone."If she doesn't fight that is going to continue and I'm not even going to mention what will happen then." Sammi said quickly. 

"But how are any of you going to handle Sinister? None of the X-Men have been able too. How are a bunch of newcomers going to do it?" Jamie said letting Cara up. 

"Because we have to. He has to pay for what he did, and not just to Jonas. He thought he could make us this way and get away with it, and I'm telling you he has another much more painful thought coming. And Vision X is going to deliver it." Sammi said ,looking at Cara and Amanda. "Now, you two have a memorial to go to. I have to say goodbye in my own way." Sammi turned and left. 

**Jubilee_79**


	20. Reality Bites-Part 20

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters belong to Marvel Comics. All Non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 20

**

Ryan and Sabertooth walked with Maria, Amanda, and Cara to the memorial service being held for Jonas. Both felt a little uncomfortable due to the fact that both of them had tried to kill him in the past. Ryan hadn't had a lot of time to get to know Jonas but what she did know of him she liked. He was so loyal and protective of his friends especially Sammi. 

Ryan was having a hard time accepting his death. It was something she went through when people died around her. She had lost two good friends just this year and it was killing her to lose another. In her mind he still wasn't dead and would come back. It had happened with Athena so why not someone else? 

The group stopped by Bobby's room to see Athena and him walking out. Ryan went and put her arm around Athena. She knew this had to be hard on her. Teb and Angelo walked up shortly after and the group walked over to memorial. Each person walking as slowly as they could. Ryan thinking that if she didn't make it there then it wasn't true and he wasn't dead. 

Sabertooth looked at Ryan and began to think back to how he felt when he thought she was dead. He didn't envy the pain Sammi must be going through. Losing someone you love was the hardest thing in the world. He didn't know what he would do if he ever lost Ryan. 

Amanda had been talking to Ryan telling her that she didn't want Sabertooth to go with them after Sinister. This broke Sabertooth from his thoughts. 

"You can't stop me from going frail. I ain't leaving Ryan alone. " 

"Victor please this is something I need to do on my own." Part of Ryan wanted him to go because she felt safe with him. Another part was scared that if he went something could happen to him as well. She didn't want him to die too. 

**Le Fae**

The service was short, but the emotions felt were strong. How do you say good bye to someone you've only known a short time, but who already meant so much? Amanda was asked to speak because Sammi had left to say her personal goodbye. It was the most difficult thing Amanda had ever done. 

"What do you say when a friend leaves too soon? We've only known Jonas such a short time, but in life, a short time might as well be a life time. He brought a warmth into our lives that can't be replaced. He could make us laugh with his inability to land or he could drive us crazy with his teasing. Although some of you may not know this, he did a great chicken impression." 

"The most important thing was that he was our friend. He was someone who cared about our feelings and was cared for in returned. I don't think he was as happy at home as he was here, but , like so many of us, there was something he was missing at home that he found here. I believe that Jonas would not want any of us to regret being here and meeting. I think he would want us to be glad that we had the chance to meet and make such strong relationships. He was proud to be a member of this team. He cared about every one of us. If we remember to live and love life as he did, then we will keep his memory alive no matter what happens. Until we meet again friend, goodbye." 

Amanda heard the other say their goodbyes. Amanda wished that she could have thanked Jonas for caring about her. She didn't have many friends. Most people didn't try to break down her barriers. He did. He didn't let her run away from her responsibility or her heart. She would always be grateful for that. 

"Goodbye, Jonas. I won't fail you again." she whispered as she return to the house. 

**A.C.**

Athena thought about Amanda's words at the memorial service. The more those words ran through her mind, the more determined she felt. 

"Bobby, I have to find Amanda. I'll see you in the mansion." She kissed his cheek and headed in the direction she had seen Amanda take. 

She had to be sure if Vision-X was going to face Sinister, that she would be part of it. She had the feeling that if she didn't act quickly, Bobby and Hank would have her neatly sedated again. 

/Surely there has to be some way for me to help./ she thought. 

**snowbaby**

Teb and Angelo walked up to where most of the teammates were meeting up after the memorial service. Ryan and Maria looked up. 

"Hey Teb."they said it with rather sad, respectful voices. 

"Hi." Teb said in a similar tone. The death of Jonas brought back some very sad memories for her. one of her good friends was shot in a gang banging during one of their painting outings one night, and he died in her arms. She got sick, and seeing Jonas like that, he was one of the only teammates she had a conversation with. She was always with Angelo, or was interrupted. 

**_~Previous Night~_**

That night she and Ange were sitting on the lawn talking. Teb was crying, something she never does, and she was picking at the grass 

"It's not fair Ange. Why do all my friends have to die? They were good people, all of them, Carlos used to donate food to homeless shelters. He was a good guy. J-J-Jamie used to sing. She had such a pretty voice. Why did they have to die??!?! WHY? Cause they were in the wrong place at the wrong time?? LOOK WHAT HAPPENED TO JONAS!!! That could happen to me, to Sammi, to Cara, to anyone. WHY? What did I do? What did he do that was so wrong? All he did was love people. That's all he did. ITS NOT FAIR!" 

Teb was becoming hysterical and she started stabbing(?!?) at the ground. 

"I WISH I WOULD HAVE DIED INSTEAD! AT LEAST JONAS WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL TO THE TEAM. at least...at least.." 

"Shhhh shhh..." Angelo grabbed Teb into a hug and rubbed her back. "Chica," he said and lifted up her head "Chica, look at your hands..." 

Teb looked down at her hands. they were metal! they were metal spikes. 

"Oh my g-." 

**_~Present~_**

"I have something to show you guys." she said as she took her right hand out of the pocket of the grey hoodie she wore. She formed her hand into a metal spike, then into a battle ax shape. Then back into a hand and put it back into her pocket. 

The others nodded. They didn't overreact. It wasn't the time or the place to. Teb looked absolutely miserable, and she was. She nodded back to them. 

"Guess my powers aren't so useless." she said and walked away from them and up to her room. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan was getting into her battle suit. Soon, she and the rest of Vision X were going to face Sinister. Victor had flatly refused to stay behind. He was not going to sit around at home and wait to find out she was dead. Victor felt his heart twist in his chest. He knew that she would be leaving him if she did live through this. 

The chance of her dying though was high, especially with the little surprise Sinister had in store for them. He briefly debated telling them about what he knew but figured him being there could prevent most tragedies. Just to be safe Victor was going to be sticking close to Ryan. She really was the only one he cared about….ever. 

"I really think you should let me do this alone." She said looking into his eyes. 

" I can't do that frail. " He said stepping closer to her and kissing her tenderly on the lips. 

The two walked down to the hanger to meet up with the rest of the team. 

Maria was already waiting for everyone. She looked nervous. 

"We are going to be fine." Maria told herself. 

Athena and Bobby entered the hanger next. Bobby's face spoke worlds of worry and you could see the tear stains on his face. 

"Please don't go." Was all he could say. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb got into her suit and pulled her hair into a pony tail. 

"I'm gonna go downstairs now, Ange." 

Angelo was sitting on the bed, watching Teb get ready. He didn't want her to go, but he knew she had to. 

"Good luck, chica." Ange said, and pulled her into a hug. 

Teb hugged back and they stood there for a while. 

"C'mon, lets go downstairs." 

"Ok, chica." 

"Ange?" 

"Si?" 

"I love you." 

"Si, me too." 

Teb and Angelo walked downstairs. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"You do not have to do this alone." Charles informed Amanda, as they talked in his study. Vision X was do to leave at any moment and he had wanted to talk to her alone. 

"Your faith in us is encouraging." Amanda teased. 

"I only want you to reconsider this. The X-men have faced Sinister many times and we have never completely defeated him. You do not have enough experience to handle him on your own." informed Xavier. 

"We'll have Sabertooth, so that will make up for experience." Replied Amanda sheepishly. 

"What!" exclaimed Xavier. 

"He said he would raise hell if he did come, and this is the first time I think he's ever cared about anything. He can also give us more inside information about Sinister then any X-men. Besides, I warned him that if he screws any member of my team, he'll think he's Scooby Doo for the rest of his life." 

Charles was about to complain and then stop. He knew she had made up her mind and nothing would change it. She was as stubborn as he was. It was one of the reasons he love her. 

"Promise me you'll be careful." he asked. 

"I will be. We're all coming home from this one." 

"Which home will that be?" he asked. 

"I don't know," Amanda replied, "You do know I love you, right? I just want to be sure that we're clear on this fact." 

Charles held out his hand and she took her place on his lap. Slowly he lowered his head and kissed her gently. She return the kiss with everything in her. She knew that some how, some way, she would find him again. 

"I love you..... You better go." Charles stated as he let her go for possibly the last time. 

Amanda smiled one last time and left to join her team. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

As the others headed for the memorial, Sammi walked outside and into the woods. She found the spot she was looking for. It was the tree that Jonas knocked down the night they had their first talk. She sat down with her back resting in the tree and remembered what it felt like to be in his arms. The feeling of being protected and how right it felt. She realized now that he was her soul mate, and that no matter what, someday they would find each other again. 

Sammi believed in reincarnation and knew that some day they would be together again. She looked up to the sky and said," Goddess, if your listening, can you see to it that we find each other soon. I'm not whole without him. I need him." 

Sammi heard a small laugh, it sounded like bells. Then there was a tiny voice that said," She's always listening. Your one of her favorites." 

Sammi turned to see a small fairy hovering next to her. "Who are you?" She asked when she got over her shock. The fairy laughed again and said," I'm Harmonia. Daughter of Aphrodite and I'm your guardian." 

"Aphrodite? The Goddess?" Sammi asked. 

She knew about that Gods and Goddesses, they were part of her religion. While she was living in the mall she use to go to the book store a lot and one day she found a book on Wicca and she read it and soon began practicing the ways. 

For anyone who didn't know about Wicca, she was just a witch, but to those who know, she a person who in a sense became one with the earth. The Gods and Goddesses are a big part of it and they each have different jobs, so to speak and Aphrodite is the Goddess of Love and Marriage. 

"Yes. And as I said, she always listens to you." Harmonia said. 

How did you become my guardian, Harmonia?" Sammi asked looking at the little fairy. 

She was beautiful with golden blond hair the color of the sun and a white dress that seemed to pick up all of the colors in the world. 

"Please, call me Harmony. And I became your guardian when you were born in this life. I'm the one that helped you find that book on Wicca and when I did that I started you on your way home. As I have in all of your lives. You were one of the few true pure hearted witches and you were always a favorite of the Gods." She said smiling. "By the way I like the blue, this time. It fits you better." 

Sammi touched her streak and said,"This time?" 

"Yes, the strip of white in your hair has come to you in all of your lives. Its is a mark of the Gods so they could find you in all of your lives." She said giggling. "They did that after, the one time you were born a twin and they couldn't tell you two apart at first, so when they did they marked you with that streak so that it didn't happen again." 

Sammi giggled a little just picturing Zeus or any of the other Gods trying to tell a set of twins apart. When she stopped giggling, she looked at Harmony and said," Why are you here now?" 

"I'm allowed to visit you a few times in your live and I felt I needed to be here now. I have to tell you something." Harmony said as she landed on Sammi's knee. 

"What do you have to tell me other than I have been bonded by the Gods and that I'm one of Aphrodite's favorites?" Sammi asked. 

If she was home when this happened she wouldn't have believed it but being that she was in a world where the X-Men are real she could believe anything. 

"My mother and the other Gods wanted me to tell you that your destined will be back. They hate to see you hurt, so they thought that you could use this to help yourself." Harmony said sitting down. She knew if this was taken like the other times she visited her she would be explaining. 

Sammi looked at her and asked, " My destined? You mean we are Soul mates? Ok, talk. I think there is more than what you are telling me." 

Harmony smiled and said, "Because it is written in your destiny." 

"But how do you know that Jonas will be back?" Sammi asked as she processed all of the information. 

"I just do. Trust in the Gods. Besides, if he doesn't your gonna start busting some skulls." Harmony said. 

"I think you have been assigned to me for to long, your starting to talk like me." Sammi said with a smile, "Is there anything else I should know? " 

"Because of your love you are also a healer. You can heal anything. With that power you have to be careful. Look into the person's heart and if it is true then it will work, but if the heart is not true it won't." Harmony said starting to lift off. "Oh, also Jonas is not going to look the same but you will know it is him by his eyes. They have never lied to you in the past and they won't now. Also, Logan is you father, from all of you lives. He got lost on this one but now you have been brought together. And remember, My mother, all of the Gods and I are taking care of you. There will never be anything you can't handle. Stay true to your heart, you'll need its strength later." 

And with that Harmony was gone. Sammi woke up when she heard a twig snap. She smelt the air and said," Hi, Logan." 

"How you doing, darlin'?" Logan asked as he sat down next to her. 

"I must have fell asleep. Would you believe I just had a fairy explain my life to me?" Sammi said looking at him and remembering what Harmony said about him being her father. She shook her head, and thought, /I really have to stop having these dreams, they keep getting weirder and weirder./ 

"After everything, yes I would. Do you want to go in?" Logan asked. 

Sammi remembered what she realized in the danger room and said, "Yes. I have to work in Hank's lab. I have to find the device that Anon used to kill Jonas. Sinister had to have put it in us when he injected us as a sort of escape clause if we got in his way. Do you want to help?" 

"Sure Darlin'" Logan said as they got up. He looked down at the tree trunk and asked,"Did you do that?" 

Sammi looked down and saw carved in the trunk was a heart and inside it said 'Sammi and Jonas Forever. So Mote It Be.'. She looked at Logan and said, "I think a little fairy did it." She smiled as they walked back to the house. 

**_~Medlab~_**

Sammi was leaning over one of the microscopes studying something when Hank walked in. When he saw her he also pasted out but it was the next person that made him go speachless. In all of the years that Logan has been an X-man he was never in the medlab unless someone was hurt and Sammi looked fine for someone who just lost a loved one. 

"Hay, Hank?" Sammi said not even looking up. "Can you come here and see if I'm right about this?" She asked as she heard him come towards her. 

"What are you looking at?" He asked looking into the microscope. 

"Blood. I need to see if you see anything unusual in it?" Sammi said looking at Logan as he was looking at the different bottles that Hank had in one of the cabinets. 

"I really don't see......." Hank started to say but cut himself off as he found what seemed to be an odd cell. On the slide that he had there were two so if this was in a human there could be over a billion. "There's an odd looking cell. Is that what your talking about?" 

"Yes Hank that is exactly what I'm talking about. Those extra cells are what make us vulnerable to Anon. That is, they helped her to kill Jonas the way she did. Now We have to find a way to make it not affect us." Sammi said as she heard the beeping of the DNA reader. "I'll get that." She said as she walked over to the machine and took the paper out and looked at it. 

Hank couldn't stand it anymore. He had to know. "Sammi, How did you know how to work that machine and How did you know that the odd cell is what helps Sinister?" 

Sammi looked up at Hank and simply said, "I'm an idiot savant." 

"Really, How?" Hank asked. He had never met one before, people had called him one but if he was he wouldn't be in the lab almost 24/7. They always fascinated him. Someone who just pick everything up at the drop of a hat. 

"I read alot. Actually anything I could get my hands on and because of my photographic memory I can remember all of it in a second. I'm a killer at trivia games." Sammi said looking back at the paper, she said, "This is amazing. Hank can you read this over for me I'm not sure I'm reading right." She brought the paper over to Hank and he looked at it. 

"The specimens are a positive match. What is this?" He asked as he looked at the read out. "It looks like DNA but whose?" 

"Hank, you better sit down." Sammi said and turned to Logan and said,"You, too." 

"What is this Samantha?" Hank asked again. 

"That's mine and Logan's DNA. I tested its paternity and you read the results." Sammi said quickly. 

"In English, Darlin'." Logan said as he watched Hank's face drop and he knew that if you could see his skin it would be white. 

"In English, I'm really your daughter." Sammi said as she looked at him. 

"How can that be?" Logan asked. 

"I have no clue." Sammi and Hank said at the same time. 

**jubilee_79**

"Does it truly matter, Logan? It was kinda of obvious if you thought about it." replied Amanda from the doorway. 

"You don't seem surprised." stated Sammi. 

"Neither do you." Amanda replied. 

"Am I the only one who is confused here, my young companions?" questioned Hank. 

"Probably, Hank, but if you think about it, nothing that has happened should be surprising now. That is assuming, you have visitors from alternate realities visit all the time." Stated Amanda. 

"Why are you here, anyway?" asked Sammi. 

"I wanted to see if you were alright. I know you went out on your own and I wanted to make sure you didn't do something you might regret later. When I sensed your presence here I came here." 

"I'm fine, considering." Sammi informed. 

"I know." 

"I hate having people running around in my head." Informed Sammi. 

"I know, it's something you share with your Father." 

"Will someone explain what is going on?" demanded Logan. 

**A.C.**

Sammi went and sat down next to Logan. He looked at her and said,"Darlin' explain." 

"Ok. Plain and simple. I'm your daughter, literally. The DNA test proved it. I'm your biological daughter." Sammi said hopping he got it now. 

"Really? How?" He asked looking at Hank and Amanda and then back to Sammi. 

"That is what I don't have the answer for. Its the biggest puzzle I have ever tried to figure out and the most important pieces are missing, But my gut is telling me that Sinister is behind it, all the way." Sammi said looking at Amanda. 

"I really have a daughter?" Logan asked looking at Sammi but this time adding the fact that she is his daughter and he saw her in a different light. He grabbed her and gave her a bear hug that lifted her off the ground. And when you consider that She is taller than him this is a great feat. 

"Dad.. I'm happy, too. But I need to breath, ya know." Sammi choked out as he squeezed her. 

"Sorry, darlin'." Logan said as he released her. 

"No prob. Dad. I like saying that." Sammi said as she looked at him. 

"I like hearing it." Logan said. 

"Ahem." Hank said as he cleared his throat. Everyone turned and looked at him. "Considering this new development, maybe more tests are in order." He said reading over the DNA report again. 

Sammi looked pleadingly over to Amanda. Amanda remembered how she reacted in the medlab when Hank mentioned blood work. 

"We were getting ready to leave, maybe we can do this later." Amanda said smiling at the relieved Sammi. 

"Oh, wait. Amanda, I found something. Come here." Sammi lead her over to the microscope and showed her the new cell. 

"Is there anything we can do to stop it from working?" Amanda asked. 

"I've been trying a few things but nothing yet. And I think it would be better if we went afer Sinister, when we had the cell neutralized." Sammi said and then looking at Logan and Amanda and seeing that she lost them. She said,"We should wait until we can stop it and everyone has been given the shot for it." 

"How long?" Amanda asked. 

"I think with Hank's help, maybe by tomorrow." Sammi said. 

"Ok." Amanda said looking like she thought she was loseing time. 

"Amanda, Sinister is going to expect something after Jonas's death, but He won't expect us to wait. It will be a surprise. Also as I do this I need all of the telepaths, we need to shield all of us from Anon. Especially after what she did to Jonas." 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda was not as happy as the others about waiting. When she had informed the others, she had sensed their relief. She was the only impatient one. She knew Sinister was planning something and waiting would give him time to achieve it. 

The other reason was that Amanda knew their time was winding down and it was getting harder to be around Charles and not lose it. She constantly thought about their night together. She could not imagine leaving him and her friends. It was just easier to leave now before anything happened. 

She had gone outside to avoid being around everyone. She had sensed the concern that Cara, Sammi, and Charles felt. They all thought that she was on the verge of a breakdown. It was possible they were right. She found a secluded part of the grounds and let it all out. 

No one had seen her show after the one meeting. She had been glad. Her psychic weapons were beautiful before they connect with something. They glimmered with colors that could only be found in one's imagination. Once they connected with an object, they released such power that the sight looked like something one would see on a battlefield. 

She didn't hold back. She used her psychic bow to swipe at anything around her. Each blow releasing a wave of energy that disintegrated any object it touched. By the time she had released all the pain and frustration, there was nothing left to the once peaceful scenery. All that remained were charred skeletons of what was. 

Amanda fell to the floor, all her energy depleted. All the angry, self defeating thoughts remained in her head, louder then before. 

"I didn't know you were capable of that." 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi stepped out of the med lab and walked up to the kitchen. She needed a drink and a strong one. She looked in the cabinets and then she found what she was looking for. She opened the bottle and took a sip. She hadn't had a shot of vodka since the party. She shivered as she remembered. 

"Man, I miss you Jonas." She said to no one particular, but she got an answer. 

"Everyone does." Said the voice. 

Sammi turned to see Teb and Angelo in the door way. 

"Si, chica. We all miss him. How you dealing?" He asked as he sat down at the table. 

"As well as can be expected. But I'm haunted by a really weird dream. Oh, did you hear the news?" She asked changing the subject. 

"What news?" Another voice asked from the doorway. 

Sammi turned to see Ryan and Creed there. She jumped a little and said,"That is really goin' to take alot to get use to." She shook her head and said," Well, my news is that I found my father." 

"Wow, really?" Teb said as she got up and gave her a hug. Sammi was a little taken back, but she hugged her back. 

"How, chica?" Angelo asked. 

"That's the strange part, a fairy told me about it in my dream and I thought I would run a DNA test in the lab and it came back positive." Sammi said as she looked at their faces she added,"I told you I have been having really weird dreams." 

"You're the runt's cub, ain't ya?" Creed asked. 

Sammi looked at him and said,"Would you please refrain from calling him runt while you are in this house, Mr. Creed?" 

"Sammi don't mind him." Ryan said throwing Creed and look that said 'Be nice.' She turned back to Sammi and asked," Is Logan your father?" 

"That's the other strange part, he is." Sammi said shaking her head." I don't get it. I just don't understand how?" 

"I know we'll get some answers. We all will." Teb said. Sammi looked at Ryan and then Teb and said, "Thanks." 

Sammi looked at Teb's clothes, and she remembered when she was younger and she use to be a tagger. She wore almost the same clothes. So she asked," Are you a tagger?" 

Teb looked shocked for a moment and then said,"Yep. How did you know?" 

"I used to do it myself, a few years ago. As a matter of fact a few of my tags are still in San Fran. Except the ones that they painted murals over, but I did most of those, so I guess I'm still all over San Fran." Sammi said with a smile. 

Teb looked at her and then to Angelo and said ,"I like her." Angelo came over and gave Teb a hug and smiled at Sammi and said,"She definitely knows how to get a point across." 

Sammi smiled and finished her shot and said, "Well, I better get back down there or Hank is gonna start looking for Jimmy Hoffa." She smiled as Ryan, and Teb laughed. Sammi looked at Creed and Angelo and because of their confused looks she started to laugh too. 

**jubilee_79**

Ryan snuggled her body a little closer to Victor's and played with the blonde hair that covered his chest. Sabertooth once again wanted to laugh at the image of him snuggling. This girl had definitely changed his life and now she was leaving. He pulled her a little closer to him. 

"I want you to stay close to me tomorrow frail, I don't want you to run off on your own." Victor said running his fingers up and down her bare arm. 

"I can take care of myself. I'm a big girl now Daddy." Ryan said in a mock joking tone. 

"This ain't a joke girl. I am not going to lose you." 

Ryan lifted her head and looked in his eyes. She almost saw tears but he was still too tough to show them. Kissing his lips she placed her hand on his heart and felt the beat. 

Looking into his eyes once more she said, "When I leave promise me that you're not going to lose this." Gesturing down to his heart, "I know everyone says you are a heartless killer but your not and I don't want you to ever start believing you are again." 

Victor looked down to her small hand on his brood chest. She truly believed in him and saw him as something better then what he ever thought he could be. He looked into her eyes and thought, "I would be anything she wanted me to be just for those eyes." 

**Le Fae**

**_~Kitchen~_**

Teb and Angelo rummaged through the drawers. 

"GOT THE MARSHMALLOWS!" Teb yelled. 

"Got the graham crackers." Ange called. 

Leilee walked in. "what are you two doing?" 

Ange smiled pulled out a handful of candy bars that were hidden behind the healthy cereal. "making smores chica, wanna join?" 

Teb rummaged through the silverware drawer and pulled out a handful of cheesy Chinese takeout chopsticks. "These should do it." 

Leilee laughed as they piled their ingredients around the toaster. 

"Don't tell me." Leilee chuckled. "Roasting marshmallows over a not so open fire?" 

Teb laughed and stuck a marshmallow on a chop stick "Haha, we did this the first time I was here." 

The three laughed and pulled up around the toaster. 

"Hmmm, my marshmallow is burning." 

"Chica, that's when it's the best." 

"Trade ya marshmallows." 

"Si, you gotta deal." 

Teb smiled and gave Ange a kiss, just as her overly cooked marshmallow caught on fire. 

"oh sh**" 

Leilee couldn't stop laughing at the two. 

Teb blew out her marshmallow and stuck it on a graham cracker and gave it to Ange. 

"Gracias." 

They finished their smores without too much more commotion. and the toaster only got a little marshmallowy. 

"My word child... What have you done to our toaster?" 

Teb looked up from her giggling fit at Storm. 

"Um.." Teb and Leilee gave each other a look. 

"ANGE DID IT." they both said at the same time and darted out of the kitchen. 

"Yer gonna pay for that chica!" Ange yelled and ran after Teb out of the kitchen. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara stared across the waters of the sea, watching it glimmer and sparkle in the light of the new dawn. The sun had not yet come up, but the birds were already awake, singing and greeting the new day. It was such a beautiful scene, so peaceful and calm, Cara couldn't believe that it was the same place where she had almost plunged to her death just a few hours ago. 

The breeze was cool as it brushed against Cara's face...she shivered, but it wasn't from the cold of the wind...it was from the cold within. Her veins felt like they were filled with ice...she couldn't get warm no matter what she did. It had been one of the longest nights of Cara's life. 

She had spent the remainder of the night on the cliff, sitting with her back against a tree, and staring across the ocean. She had spent the night alone; she couldn't take the concerned, worried looks of her friends. She knew they cared, but she couldn't take the fact that what was happening to her was causing them pain, especially after what happened to Jonas. The memories of their pain filled faces at the memorial service slashed at her heart...and left her no piece of mind. 

Cara's eyes glistened with tears as she remembered Jonas' death, and remembered how helpless she felt...Suddenly Cara's eyes hardened, and she wiped away the tears. She had come to a decision. 

Cara stood up, and walked over to the edge of the cliff, her red eyes glowed dangerously and her face was hard and cold as ice. 

"I have always tried to be a peacemaker because, for me, life has always been too short to waste on making trouble. But now, I feel differently. For Jonas, and for my friends, I will fight, no matter what the cost. Watch out Sinister, for we are coming for you. And we will win." She said coldly. Cara paused, then added, "I know you're out there Anon, and I know you can hear me. I am coming for YOU!!!" 

Cara turned, and began to walk through the forest, in the direction of the mansion. 

**_~Sinister's Lair~_**

Anon's silver eyes glistened behind her mask, and she smiled. /Ah, Cara, a challenge? I accept...I will be waiting, little one./ 

**Rainfall**


	21. Reality Bites-Part 21

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 21

**

**_~Hall of Dragons~_**

A lifetime of memories, wisdom, experiences and desires filled his mind. His name was Thanagar; Warrior, guardian and protector. 

He could remember the war, when it all started, with the first stab in the back... how he killed mercilessly to defend the council of elders, His mate and his young ones. 

But he lost it all, they all died, everyone but him. He was the most powerful Dragon, the likes of him never before seen... 

The memories twisted in on themselves and vanished, leaving the experiences and wisdom still there, but memories faded to that of dreams. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

He could remember his assignment... protect a soul, a soul Noble, yet dangerous; Strong yet weak. It was given to him by the Ancients themselves, before they abandoned the dragons. His name was Azmaru. 

He protected it every day of the past, As he does this day, even if the Ancient is no longer. 

The memories twisted once again, but this time the experiences and wisdom are not about battle of blood, pain of fear... but of love, poetry, history, art, song and music. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Far from as intense but just as important, never again will Thanagar strike down on his enemy, or crave revenge that can never be satisfied. Never again will he feel the heat of battle. 

Nor will Azmaru writet another song, or tell the tale of time long since past. All he was will be no more... 

The world changed; All that is Thanagar, the anger and hate, lust for revenge and the love of his mate, merged with that of Azmaru, his kind spirit, his true word and his warm heart... 

If told by any of them, they would be like oil and water, impossible to join... but when given the chance, we find them to be more alike then any other... 

It stops, Thanagar, Azmaru is no more... his name is Jonas; born as a man bonded to a Dragon, pain as in life as in death... 

He opened his eyes, the Red eyes that showed the cold and dead hatred of life that belonged to Thanagar disappeared, and a pair of warm yet sad blue eyes appeared. 

The realization that two have died to give him life, pains him to no end. But the memories have shown him why it had to be done. 

"We will have to give you a name, one that will be spoken to you by your brothers and sisters of the sky." Ramagar's voice rumbled as he saw that Jonas moved. 

"Nocilis, He who lives." Ramagar walked over to the side and brought up a new crystal. 

"One more thing before I let you go back, to one day return to lead us back... I give you the magic of your race..." 

The crystal started to glow. "I give you Water, Fire, earth, wind and the energy to bind them, this is a gift seldom given and seldom mastered, you already do and have both." 

"A Goddess begged of me today, my brother, to return you to your loved ones." Ramagar looked sad. "I have lost friends dear to me today, part of me does not want to lose the last of them... the part of them that is you." 

The crystal started to glow bright. "That is why I do it." 

The Dark dragon form of Jonas disappeared in to mist and vanished. 

"No one should ever lose someone they care about." Ramagar crushed the Crystal under his grip. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

He was in the air... no, he was in water... he had no strength to swim, his arms were too weak, but he didn't give up, and he reached the surface. 

His body was changing now; a mixture of Dragon and man. He pushed harder and made it to the shore... he was now a man, almost. 

It was hard to breathe, it was as if the air didn't fill his lungs... he looked down at the side of his chest. 

His gills was gasping for water and his mouth for air. 

The new gills closed tight and he began to breathe normally. His mind was complaining, he was not supposed to have gills at all, it was not to be like this. 

So much felt wrong, smelled wrong, He grasped at the ground and screamed in frustration, his mind was raging so much new... it was so wrong. 

This was not his body anymore... it was ugly and deformed. 

He looked into the water at the reflection of his face... it was his old face, only slightly more powerful cheek bones and his brows were a little bigger and his hair was really long. 

His eyes, the eyes were the same blue as he was used to, but they where cat shaped. 

He jumped back, scared. He felt a pain in his back and fell forward, as he looked back he could see a pair of big Bat-like wings had grown out as he thought of flying away. 

The power was gone, he could not fly without wings. The wings folded back in under the skin and vanished. 

Wrapping his arms around himself he could feel that the muscles in his body were different, he could feel the gills at the side of his chest, four on each side, the first right under his arm, the last just above his hip. 

What had they done to him? He ran one hand through his hair and he could feel ridges running across his skull under the hair. 

He screamed one more time, this time the scream turned into a roar as his body partially changed into a dragon, his shape and size still the same, but his skin hardened and turned into impenetrable scaled armor, making him almost invulnerable. 

He grabbed the side of the cliff he was standing on and slammed his fist into it, long black ridges formed across his fist and shattered the rock under his pounding, soon a large rock loosened About 20 feet high. He grabbed it in both hands and hurled it out over the sea... 

No one could see him like this... before he was a man that turned into a Dragon, now he was a dragon that could turn into a human look alike, but he was still a monster. For a moment he wished he *WAS* dead, now he was alive but he could never be loved like this. 

He dragged his legs up to his chest, putting his head on his knees and tried to cry... but no tears would come, his eyes were no longer capable of that. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara was halfway through the forest when she heard it. She wasn't sure what she heard, but it was coming from the cliff that she had just left. Cara felt that something was wrong... she had to go back. She turned and began running back to the cliff. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara came out the other side of the trees...she saw a figure huddled on the ground, it's back was towards her. The figure stiffened, as if knowing it was being watched...it turned sharply to see who was there. 

Cara gasped...the figure was that of a man, but a man unlike anything Cara had ever seen. Cara watched as the blue, cat-like eyes contracted, as if the man expected an attack...Cara didn't want to alarm him, so she put up her good hand and backed off. She stopped a few feet away, and looked thoughtfully at the man. He looked vaguely familiar to Cara, but she just couldn't place him. 

/I must have been mistaken./ she thought to herself. Cara concentrated, and sent a message back to the mansion. ~Amanda, Sammi, Xavier...We have a visitor...boy, I hope you guys can hear me...~ 

To the man, Cara said, "Hi, my name is Cara...don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you... I just hope you're not going to hurt me." 

**Rainfall**

**_~Medlab~_**

Sammi looked up from the microscope when she heard Cara's thought. 

/Oh, Goddess. Please let that part of the dream be real, too./ She thought as she jumped up and headed for the door. 

"Where are ya goin', darlin'?"Logan asked as she started for the door. He'd stayed in the medlab with Sammi and Hank. 

"Cara said there is a visitor on the cliff. I have to see." She said as she ran out the door. 

"Not without me, you're not." Logan said as he followed. 

**_~The Cliff~_**

Jonas didn't know what to do. He recognized Cara, but as he thought she didn't reconize him. 

/What is Sammi going to think?/ He thought. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

/Please let it be him./ Sammi thought over and over again as she ran. She knew Logan was following her but all that mattered was that she had to see if it was Jonas. 

She got to the cliff and found Cara. She ran up to her and followed her gaze. She saw the man. His hair was long and his eyes looked like a cat's, but there was something about them. 

/It's all in the eyes, that's how you knew him all the times before, and that is how you will know him now./ She remembered the fairy say. 

She looked at his eyes, they were the same blue and as she looked deeper she saw that they were different but they were still the same. It was Jonas. He was back. Her heart was doing flip flops. She couldn't move... she was staring at him, not really believing her eyes. Then Logan came up to her and saw the man and went into a defensive stance. 

"Alright, bub. Who are you and what are you doing here?" He asked, ready to strike if her didn't like the answer. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

He was watching Cara as he heard someone coming. Then he saw who it was. Sammi. He saw her stop and look at him. He couldn't move. He was so happy to see her again but he didn't know how she would react at seeing him like this. He was staring at her as she was staring at him. 

He heard Wolverine say,"Alright, bub. Who are you and What are you doing here?", but Jonas couldn't answer... he was still looking at Sammi. 

/Its her move. If she recognizes me, I'll be me. And if she doesn't, I'll be someone else./ He thought as her looked at her. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi put her hand on Logan's arm. "It ok. He belongs here." She said. 

Logan looked at her but she didn't take her eyes off the visitor. "What do you mean, darlin'?" 

Still looking at Jonas she said, "Its Jonas." She slowly walked up to him and said,"You are Jonas, right?" 

He looked at her and he couldn't speak. /She knows its me. How can she know?/ He thought as she looked at him and didn't do anything but smile. 

**jubilee_79**

What did it matter if she recognized him, he was sill a monster... 

Sammi's looks and smile were hurting him inside... he thought that he would never see her again, combined with the confusion of his body and the self-pity he was in. 

Jonas took a step back... "Yes." he said and lowered his head. 

Tears sprung from Sammi's eyes and she threw herself at him... Jonas noticed this. 

"NOOO!" Jonas jumped into the air, the wings sprung from his back and he was hovering in the air. 

"Don't touch me." 

Logan jumped to protect Sammi, not trusting this new guy to be Jonas... Jonas was dead. 

"Can't you see what has been done to me?" he screamed. 

He slammed down close to Sammi, making her and Logan fall over when the rush of wind from his wings hit them. 

"I'm no, longer human, I should be dead." the wings retracted, and he looked away. "They didn't tell me it would be like this." he said sadly. 

Sammi was quick to her feet and before Jonas could react she wrapped her arms around him. She could tell that his body was different... Every muscle felt wrong on him. But it didn't matter. He was back, why could he not accept that from her. 

People started to gather around looking at him, he slowly returned the hug. 

"I... I... Never thought I would see you again." he said and held her tight. 

Cara was not sure and she had to know. "Is it really you?" she said and walked closer. 

Jonas saw her rock-like arm. 

In a swift moment he grabbed her arm hard and dragged her closer, he concentrated on the rock. 

It was slowly eating its way up her arm, he cold feel the rock moving over her skin. 

Cara was stunned, what was going on? 

Jonas didn't know how he knew what he was doing, but he had knowledge of magic and it was calling to him. 

Then she felt the pain. It hurt like crazy, it was as if Jonas hand was burning and the rock arm hurt too much... she screamed and passed out. 

====== 

Cara opened her eyes... the pain was gone. She looked at her arm, it was normal! 

**_~Sinister's Lair~_**

Anon screamed in pain as she felt her plan with Cara backfire. 

**Admiral**

**_~Bobby's Room~_**

Athena and Bobby were oblivious to the goings on throughout the mansion. Athena sighed and said, "Bobby, I can't do this forever." 

"Can't do what?" Bobby asked while stroking her hair. 

Athena propped up on her arm and looked at him for a moment. He looked amazing just lying there on his bed. How could he be so relaxed? 

"I was all set to go. I want to take care of business. I think my power surges when I'm angry. That's when I feel strongest. Waiting is just giving me time to cool off. I don't like it. It's nothing but postponing the inevitable. I'm pumped up for this now. I'm worried that by waiting I'll end up letting reason over ride revenge. I'm just so anxious to do this!" Athena told him angrily. 

Bobby laughed, "you're pretty when you're angry." He said, pulling her back down to him and kissing her. "The truth is, I don't want you to go. I don't think your heart can handle the physical strain. Hank doesn't either, he told you that. You haven't had any training in your powers. You aren't ready. I'm afraid you will die, again." Bobby said. 

"Bobby, I can't die. I have to come home to you." Athena replied in all seriousness. 

"How can you be so sure?" he asked her. 

"Because, I've never gotten to make you my double chocolate cheese cake with raspberry sauce. It is my speciality." Athena smiled. 

"Promise?" Bobby smiled weakly. 

"Promise!" Athena assured. 

She would never tell Bobby, but she really had doubts herself. She knew she wasn't fully recovered, she just hoped she could hold out until this was over. 

**snowbaby**

Just then, a message from the Professor sounded over the intercom; "Members of X-Men and Vision-X, please report to the Medlab at once." 

**Rainfall**

Everyone was in the medlab. Logan had carried Cara there after she passed out. Sammi and Jonas were by the door and Logan was standing by just in case. Hank was looking over Cara as she woke. She looked at her arm and said,"How did you do it?" 

Jonas shrugged. "I don't know. I just knew how to heal it and I did." He looked down at Sammi and she hugged him tighter. She never wanted to let him go. She smiled and said,"Magic can do anything with the help of the Gods." She turned and saw that everyone was there and she figured that the sooner she said it the better and she didn't want to have to explain it over fifty times so she said," With everyone here, I have news." 

She looked over to Amanda, and Amanda nodded. "First I don't know how but Logan is my father." 

Everyone gasped except those who already knew. Jonas squeezed her a little tighter as she continued. "And I found out how Anon killed Jonas." 

She looked at him and he hugged her even tighter, and she said, "Somehow when Sinister injected us, he also placed some extra cells that Anon can use to kill us if we get in the way. I have found the cell and Hank and I have been working on something to neutralize it and I think I just found out how, but I need your help. Are you willing, Jonas? I not going to lie to you and say that there are no needles, these is only one. I just need a small sample." She cringed as she waited for his answer. 

**jubilee_79**

Athena stood quietly as everything unfolded. She really didn't know what to think about all of it. The pieces of the puzzle just didn't fit together in her mind. I suppose, all will be made clear eventually. She smiled a little at Jonas. At any rate, having him back with the team was worth the confusion. 

"You know Jonas, I kind of like this you better. It's pretty cool." Athena said with all honesty as she smiled at him. 

"It makes you truly unique. It suits you." She added in truthful admiration. 

Turning to Sammi she said,"How long is this going to take, finding the vaccine for what Sinister and Anon have done. I'm starting to look forward to facing them and finding out what is going on around here." 

Athena felt very sure of herself and she was ready to deal with whatever Sinister could dish out. She was ready to get on with life. 

**snowbaby**

"It won't take too long with his help." Sammi said as she looked at Jonas, waiting for an answer. 

**jubilee_79**

"I don't know Sammi, I don't even know if I have blood that would be of help... or if I have blood at all, but you're welcome to try." 

Sammi smiled at him, glad he didn't take it the wrong way. 

"How do we know this guy is really Jonas." Logan said still not convinced. 

Sammi gave him a dare me look, but he was not impressed. 

"For all we know, Sinister could have sent him." He looked at Jonas narrowing his eyes. 

A half memory of Thanagar came to the surface, this was nothing short of a challenge of his word. 

"Are you challenging me of my word?" Jonas said not thinking. He was working on instincts. 

"What if I do bub." Logan said still calm. 

Jonas body changed into battle mode, his armored scales covered him in a second, claws and horns covered his body. 

And in a moment to fast for a relaxed Logan to react, an 8-foot monstrous looking creature was holding him against the wall by his neck. 

"I may not be the same as I was but I am still who I claim to be, I have been through hell and back. I don't need you questioning me right now... I am doing that fine by myself." 

He let a shocked Logan slide to the floor and changed back into his more human form. 

"Take your sample, it's to cramped in here." he said to Sammi. 

**Admiral**

"Gentlemen, please." Athena said to Logan and Jonas. 

"Logan, how many telepaths are in this room? They would know if this weren't Jonas. Look at him. Look at his eyes, they hold the same warmth they always have. Sammi would not be wrong, and if she says it's Jonas then it is." Athena said as she walked toward Jonas. Hugging him she said,"Welcome home." 

Looking back around at everyone she said, "Now, if there are no more outbursts from anyone, let's get on with this. The sooner we do, the sooner we can go after Sinister. Why don't we all wait elsewhere, while Hank, Sammi and Jonas do what they must. We don't want to overwhelm Jonas." With that Athena grabbed Bobby's hand and left the room. 

**snowbaby**

Amanda left the med-lab and the amusing scene to have some time to herself. She was still slightly upset and did not want to cause any more problems for Sammi, who had yet to try to give Jonas his shot. 

Amanda could sense that this new person was Jonas, but there was something different about him. She would talk to him later. She figured he had enough to deal with. She need to assure him that she wouldn't fail again. 

Amanda also wanted to avoid Xavier at the moment. She didn't feel like explaining her powers or what happened afterwards. She was still too raw from everything to act rationally at the moment. She need to focus. 

She had gone to the kitchen and gotten a candle. She had found a secluded room in the basement and lit the candle. Slowly she relaxed her body and focus on the flame. The flame allowed one to focus on the inner truths, which is what Amanda needed to do. She needed to know if she was the leader her team needed. If she could bring them safely home. She looked deep into the flame for guidance. Suddenly she heard a voice from within its deepest. 

"You don't think you are going to win, do you?" questioned Sinister. 

**A.C.**

"I must say that you did a good job on Anon, I'm fairly impressed." Sinister said as his astral form came into view. 

"I thought you would all break after I disposed of that useless fool." He was hoping to provoke her, get her to unleash so that he could connect and take over. 

"And when you attacked Anon to free Cara, that was really creative." Sinister looked at her. 

"I will take you down, don't worry about that." Amanda said ready to strike out with all her powers... ready to kill. 

Sinister mused, this was so amusing she would burst at him any time now and he would have her, then she would make the others come to him. 

Something flickered, and both Sinister and Amanda gazed at a figure in the shadows. 

"Even for a human you are truly distasteful." The figure said. 

From the other corner, another voice came out of nowhere. "How true Thanagar, for once I fully agree, he is about the ugliest human I have ever seen." 

"Mind us fair lady, Thanagar and I were not referring to your unquestionable beauty." The second voice said. 

"Azmaru, do not let the human female distract you, The human with silver skin seems to have a fair deal of interest in her." Amanda was taken back. Who was this? 

"I'm surprised my lady, I would have assumed that he was not your type." one of the voices said, his sarcasm was most noticeable. 

"Who are you, I dare you to show yourselves, I do not take kindly to this." Sinister said angry of this distraction. 

"Azmaru, did the human threaten me?" the voice sounded puzzled. 

"I believe he did." they both started to laugh. 

Sinister was furious, Who would take him so lightly? 

Amanda gasped as two Dragons came out of the shadows, they were too big to be in the room but somehow they were there. 

One of them, a black furious looking dragon with horns covering his body spoke first. 

"I am Thanagar, I was First warrior to the Cangir Clan, I served as protector of the councils of elder, I slayed Fraifer and was the only survivor of the battle of the hundred, I have faced creatures of which you have never seen, do you think that a mere human will make my bones shake?" 

The second Dragon talked as well, this one looked beautiful and was smaller with a light blue colored hide, but was still most likely a most impressive fighter. 

"Azmaru, that is my name, though I may not have much to brag about in terms of battle victories, I will pit my claws against yours any day." 

/Sinister, they are not her creation, they are something else... I can't be sure of their capabilities./ Anon told Sinister telepathic. 

Sinister frowned and vanished. 

The two Dragons looked at each other, and then frowned. 

"This was as close as I would likely get to a battle now or in the future... and my enemy ran." Thanagar said and laid down. 

"Mind you, we are guests here. Behave as one." Azmaru said in a harsh voice. 

"Forgive our intrusion my dear lady, but it would seem that we share a bond... one powerful enough to pull our souls from the void." 

"Void, bond... soul?" Amanda asked, suddenly the situation came to her... there were two Dragons in the room. 

Thanagar looked at Azmaru, a look as if Azmaru was crazy. "Friend, why do you think that she would be able to grasp a fraction of what have happened." 

Azmaru frowned. "We are what you would must likely call something like a psychic afterimage, our soul, or mind if you will, was drawn from us." 

He paused. "His to give a lost soul a place to live, I acted as a anchor and was drawn out when the chain was cut and the ship traveled on it's course." 

Thanagar frowned. "We both gave up our life to give our race a chance to live, the least that we deserved was a place on the hunting ground." 

Azmaru looked at Amanda. "It would seem that our task in this life is not over, my lady. There is a reason that we are here." 

Amanda swallowed, she had two dead dragons souls in her head. 

"We can be your protectors, but only in your mind, we are no longer physical entities, but we can offer you our wisdom, our knowledge, and we will be guarding your soul... your mind if you will." 

Azmaru held out his big hand. "It's your choice my lady, but I would be honored to serve you." 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb walked into the danger room. She has to try out her new powers before she was forced to face Sinister. Jubilee walked in behind her. 

"Do you have any music, Jubes?" Teb asked. 

"Sure." Jubilee said, and looked Teb up and down. 

"Hmmm.. jubes tunes#5." she ordered the computer. 

Very loud, very fast punk music blared throughout the danger room. 

Jubilee and Teb circled each other. Teb was first to strike out. She swung her extended arm formed into a blade at Jubilee's legs. Jubilee jumped it and paffed Teb in the eyes. 

"Damn." Teb said, blinking out the spots in her eyes. 

"Yea, you just make sure those blades aren't sharp, we're just practicing." Jubilee said. 

Teb smirked and lunged out again. This time she threw her arm out in a big beam of iron. Jubes dodged to the side but wasn't expecting the big beam to bend around her, and pin her hands to her sides. 

"I win." was all Teb said. 

"Gee chica. That was fast." said Ange as he walked in. 

"Bendy iron appendages vs. sparks...that was hardly a fair match up." Jubes pouted. 

"Jubilee, I'm sure if we just fought without our powers, you would have won." Teb replied. 

"I know I would have won. Wolvie didn't train a TOTAL loser. Why, when I was with the x-men..." Jubilee began to say. 

"That's enough chica." Ange didn't want to sit through another x-men story. 

"Hmmpf, fine, see if I care.... lousy teammates, never give you any respect..." Jubilee mumbled as she walked out of the danger room. 

"Chica, you need to work on your combat skills." Angelo said to Teb. 

"What's the point?" 

"You never know what kinda tricks Sinister will pull, besides they're always good to have." Ange said. 

He loaded up a combat training mission and helped Teb get prepared for the up coming battle. 

**teb**

**_~Medlab~_**

Ryan shot Jonas a quick smile, and turned to leave the room. She didn't know what he had been through, but he was back, and that's all that mattered. Ryan figured he would want some time alone with Sammi and she with him. Also Ryan was a little uneasy around Jonas given her past with him. Both she and Victor had tried to kill him. He did tell her that he forgave her but things like that don't mend easy. 

Ryan exited the lab and jogged over to catch up with Athena and Bobby. 

"Victor and I were planning to do a little night swimming. Care to join us? It's a good way to relax the body and mind." Ryan said looking to Athena. 

Ryan was still worried about her but thought better then to voice her concerns. Athena had Bobby and Hank to worry over her, she really didn't need Ryan treating her like a child as well. 

"I don't think that is a good idea." Bobby said before Athena could answer. He still didn't trust Sabertooth around her. 

"Why not? It's a heated pool and it's a beautiful night." Athena said looking to Bobby. 

"We could get some Wine or Champagne, I bet Chuck has a few good bottles. I'll see if anyone else wants to join and get Victor to sniff out the best stuff. Meet you by the pool in half an hour?" Ryan said smiling at Athena. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas walked out to the pool, the water seemed inviting. 

He slowly sank into the pool but didn't stop to keep his head above the surface. 

His body sank to the bottom... lying on his back looking up into the sky through the water... the stars were beautiful, Sammi should be here. 

He started to feel that his air was running out and his gills opened on command. He took a deep breath, but instead of breathing out again the water filtered through the gills at his side. 

It was a strange feeling, he could feel that the pool was oxygenated like some kind of aquarium... he was unsure why, and it didn't really matter. 

He felt the small pinch as his wings extended, he was tired and soon he fell asleep at the bottom of the pool, here at least here he could be alone for a time. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan had already caught up with Maria, Leilee and Gambit. They had all agreed that swimming would relax them a little before tomorrow's mission. A little night swimming was turning out to be a full-fledged pool party. As Ryan walked down the hall in search of other swimmers she saw Teb and Angelo exit the Danger room. 

"Hey you two, did you have a good workout?" She asked the young couple. 

"Not bad, Chica. Teb is a good student." Angelo beamed with pride. 

"Well a bunch of us are going to meet by the pool for drinks and some night swimming. Granted you're too young for drinks but you're welcome to join in swimming." Ryan leaned over and whispered the next part to the young couple. "I'll try to sneak a couple drinks to you if you want. I make a mean Margarita". 

"Sounds cool. I got to get cleaned up before we go though." Teb said looking to Angelo. 

"Great I'll see you pool side in a half hour." With that Ryan was off and looking for Cara. She also thought she might stop by the lab and see if Sammi and Hank wanted to go. As she thought about it more she figured she should ask Chuck if he wanted to join, after all it is his house. 

"Maybe Chuck won't be so mad about an impromptu pool party if I can get Amanda to go. I'm sure he wouldn't mind seeing her in a bathing suit." With that Ryan was off again. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Bobby, I have to...um do something." Athena said. 

She kissed his cheek and hurried off, pretending not to hear him calling after her. She found Paige and Monet in the upstairs hall. 

"Hey yall," she called. "I need a favor. We are having a pool party, you're welcome to come. My problem is... I don't have a swim suit. I don't have any clothes, I've just been sort of scavenging. You wouldn't happen to know where I could get a cool suit quick? Something that will make Bobby's head spin around?" Athena asked hopefully. 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara heard about the pool party, so she ran up to her room and grabbed her blue-violet one piece bathing suit. She changed quickly, grabbed her towel and ran down the corridor, down the stairs, and out the back door. 

There were a lot of people at the pool already, they were just kind of relaxing and lounging...talking to each other and just having a good time. 

Cara grinned and picked up speed...she jumped up into the air, somersaulted, and shouted, "CANNONBALL!!!" Cara grabbed her knees and hugged them close to her body...She landed right in the middle of the pool, sending out giant waves over the sides of the pool, getting everyone sopping wet. Cara went down, almost to the bottom of the pool...that's when she noticed Jonas who had been fast asleep...he wasn't now. 

Cara quickly swam to the surface...she treaded water, and waited to see how Jonas would react to her almost squashing him. Jonas came up, and stared at Cara. He was a little annoyed at having his nap interrupted. They stared at each other a few moments more, then Cara did something that no one expected. 

Cara swam over to Jonas, and hugged him. 

"I'm sorry Jonas, I didn't mean to ruin your nap...forgive me? You know, I'm really glad you're back, and not just because you fixed my arm...Even though we aren't related, I will always think of you as my brother." She said. 

Cara let Jonas go, then she swam over to the side of the pool and picked up a can of soda. Everyone was staring at her...Jonas was left speechless. 

**Rainfall**


	22. Reality Bites-Part 22

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 22

**

Teb ran downstairs in a pink two piece she practically had to wrestle Jubilee for. She ran to the pool and crashed into Sabertooth. 

"Oof!" said Teb. 

"Watch where you're going kid." said Sabertooth. 

"Um, sorry." apologized Teb. 

She side stepped the big man and walked to the rest of the group and sat in a chair next to Angelo. 

Ange smiled, and said, "You gotta keep your eyes open, chica." 

"Thanks for the advice." Teb said. "I still dont trust big and ugly." she whispered to Ange. "It's just so wierd." 

Ange gave Teb a reassuring hug. 

"Don't worry, chica. I trust Ryan, and Ryan trusts 'big and ugly'." 

"Yea, I guess you're right." Teb said. 

Ange looked at Teb. Teb smiled. 

"You like?" She asked as she got up and did a model turn. 

"Si, I love." he said and wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. 

Jonas was leaning on his elbows at the side of the pool. 

"Ooooooooooooooooo..." he said in a childish way. 

Teb blushed like crazy and Ange just smiled and held her tighter. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi and Hank were in the lab working on the vaccine. 

"There, it's done. Well, almost... it just has to cure for a little bit and then we can try it." Sammi said as she ran her hand through her hair. 

"Ok. I'll wait for it. Why don't you go and have fun in the pool like Ryan asked before?" Hank said looking at her. 

"Nope." Sammi said looking at Hank. 

"What do you mean? You're young. You should be carefree." Hank said surprised. 

"I'm not going without my favorite lab partner. So I'm not going unless you go." Sammi said. 

"But the vaccine." Hank said. 

"It'll be fine. Besides, I'm sick of hearing that Hank McCoy is always in the lab. You remember fun, right? It hasn't been that long, has it?" Sammi asked. 

"I guess a little time off would help. You go get changed and I'll meet you there." Hank said as he led Sammi out of the lab. 

"Deal." Sammi said, and she was off. 

**_~Jonas and Sammi's Room~_**

"I don't remember seeing a bathing suit when I unpacked the stuff that Jubes got me, but it wouldn't hurt to look." Sammi said to herself. 

Sammi opened the top drawer and found a purple two piece bathing suit. She pulled out the pieces and looked at them. 

"I think Jubes got me confused with Psylock. Well, I don't have anything else, so I guess I have to wear this." Sammi said as she went into the bathroom to get changed. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hank was waiting by the Kitchen door when he heard Sammi say, "Are you ready?" 

He turned to find her in a bathing suit that looked like Betsy's so he asked trying not to sound like he was shocked,"Did you steal that from Betsy, or did you buy that?" 

"Actually, Jubes bought it for me."Sammi said looking down at it. 

"You know your Father will kill you for wearing that."Hank said. He could see Logan's face now. 

"What my father doesn't know can't hurt me."Sammi said with a smile. "So are we going or not?" 

They headed outside. As Hank opened the door you could hear everyone having a great time. They walked out towards the pool and Sammi saw Jonas teasing Teb and Angelo and said," Can anyone join the fun or is this invite only?" 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan stepped out into the pool area wearing a tan two-piece bathing suit. The top was halter style while the bottom was a string bikini. She didn't have to worry about borrowing a suite from anyone because all she had to do was morph something into one. Ryan was really starting to like her powers. As she walked out into the area she heard a loud whistle and turned to see Victor grinning like the Cheshire cat. 

"I'm surprised you're not sending me back into the house to change." Ryan said. 

"Nope frail but I am considering sending everyone else back in the house so I can have you all to myself." replied Victor. 

Ryan took the glass of red wine Victor was holding and took a drink. She was glad to see that everyone was having fun. Victor took the glass from Ryan and set it on the table. She gave him a questioning look and then he pulled her face to his and kissed her. While she was wrapped up in the kiss he picked her up and walked into the pool. 

The kiss was broken when Ryan heard Sammi say," Can anyone join the fun or is this invite only?" Her thoughts still on the kiss, Ryan momentarily thought Sammi was referring to that. Then she remembered the party. 

"Come on in the water's great." She shouted over to Sammi. "Hey anyone up for any pool games?" She asked the general crowd. 

**Le Fae**

Cara grinned. "Count me in!!!" she called to Ryan. 

Cara felt so alive...so free. That stone arm had weighed a ton...but thanks to Jonas, she didn't have to worry about it anymore. And she found a new use for her powers. Cara saw Teb reach for a bottle of Soda. 

"Hey Teb...want me to open that for ya?" she asked, grinning. 

Cara placed one hand on the cement of the pool...a glowing streak of light shot out of her hand and trailed its way across the ground, up the patio table, up the bottle, and made its way to the cap of the bottle. 

The cap glowed, then exploded off of the bottle shooting twenty feet into the air. It spinned several times, then fell back down, rattling to a stop on the ground on the far side of the pool area. 

The bottle was unharmed, as well as the contents. 

"Nice trick, kid...just don't use it on me..." Sabertooth said, half jokingly. 

"Yeah, right...like I would. I'm not into killing." she said. Cara turned her attention back to Ryan. "So, Ryan...about those pool games!" 

"Okay, that's one, does anyone else want to join in?" Ryan asked. 

**Rainfall**

"Not really." Maria replied. She was wearing a swimming suit that was similar to the one she had back home with the goggles from her uniform. She took advantage of the clothing replicator and made herself a swimsuit. 

"I got a game we can try." Jubilee said with a wicked look in her eye. "Maria?" 

"Yeah?" 

"I want you to..." Jubilee whispered in the young girl's ear. Logan and Sammi were the only ones who could hear her and snickered. 

"I can't do that!" Maria exclaimed. 

"Sure you can. You did it with his visor." 

"But that was different. I just want to see his face. I don't want to... I don't like it." 

"You sound just like him." 

"I know." Maria said as she crossed her arms. "I don't want to turn all of the men's swimwear invisible." 

**Maria Cline**

Amanda headed towards the pool. Her head hurt and she wanted to be around living people. She had changed into a very short deep blue two piece. It was something she would normally never wear, but she loved the color, and it was hot. 

When she got there she heard Jubilee' s comment to Maria. Though she normally would not condone such actions, she wouldn't mind seeing Charles and Scott's expressions, both men had just appeared by the pool. 

(I dare you to do it, Maria.) 

(WHAT!!!!!!!!) 

(It would be so much fun!) 

Maria just stared at Amanda, determining if she had truly lost it. Amanda just smiled back. She continued smiling when she saw Charles' face when he saw her suit. She gave him her best ' eat your heart out' smiles. He smiled back, with a glimmer in his eyes. 

/Well, this could get interesting./ she thought. 

Amanda scanned the pool til she found Jonas. She wasn't surprised when she saw him with Sammi. Sammi smiled and gave her a thumbs up when she saw the bathing suit. Sammi knew why she had worn it. Jonas gave Amanda a warm smile and started to turn away when his head stapped back. His eye got a little larger and he stared at her with an odd expression. 

(We need to talk later.) Amanda explained. 

(Yes, we do.) Jonas replied. 

Although some of the tension had left him, he still had a puzzled look on his face. 

**A.C.**

Jonas stared at Amanda, not only at her... but also at the two dragons standing on either side of her. They looked at Jonas and then at each other. 

"Sammi, would you excuse me." Jonas said and walked over to Amanda. 

(Thanagar, Azmaru... what have you done, are you not to have died.) Jonas asked them through Amanda. 

Amanda looked even more confused now. She suspected that this was all connected, but Jonas acted like he had known them for a long time. 

(Don't blame us, blame your friend here... she pulled us out of the void and now we share her mind, serve as her protectors.) Thanagar said. 

(She has not yet accepted our help Thanagar...) Azmaru added. 

"Let's take a walk." Jonas said harshly and Amanda followed him, and the two psychic dragons followed her. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"He told me that you would die from that thing. I grieved you both... I feel like you are my brothers." said Jonas. 

"We don't know how this happened, but we and the young lady share a powerful bond." Azmaru said looking over at Amanda. 

"Jonas, I can't make heads or tails out of half of their talk. Please can't you... maybe explain this to me?" Amanda said, desperate. 

"I will try. Azmaru was my old protector; when I was born my old body was bonded to that of a dragon, Azmaru saw to it that I survived." 

"But I failed, and Jonas died... I took his soul and mind to our world." Azmaru said, cutting Jonas off. 

"Yes. Thanagar offered to give me his body... to give me a permanent host, so that I could live again." Jonas continued. 

Amanda started to understand. "But they had nowhere to go... right? They died." Amanda looked sadly at the two dragons. 

"I would be only too happy to accept your protection." Amanda said, giving the dragons a big smile. "But I'm not sure how you will protect me if you are only in my mind." 

Thanagar frowned. "Why do Humans always underestimate themselves and others? We might not be able to inflict damage to the physical world... But we will guard the astral plane that surrounds you. We will be able to fight for you against anyone who may try to invade your mind." 

"We can also act as your advisors." spoke Azmaru. "Thanagar and I have great wisdom to share, we can also act as your eyes and ears... in places where you are not." 

Amanda was about to say something, but Azmaru cut her off. 

"You should know that if you accept this, we will be bonded to the heart, we will serve you to the best of our abilities. But there is no going back, only death can separate us." 

"I understand." Amanda said and thought for a moment. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi watched Jonas leave, and hoped that he would tell her what happened, someday. She saw Logan walk over to her and he sat down on the edge of the pool with her. 

"What do you call that?" He asked, looking at the bathing suit. 

"A bathing suit. Why, what would you call it?" Sammi asked, amused by the tone in his voice. 

"I call that indecent." Logan said looking at her sternly. 

Sammi laughed and said,"Don't blame me, Jubes bought it for me. Speakin' of which, how is she handling me being your daughter?" 

"I don't know. She hasn't mentioned it. Why?" Logan asked curiously. 

"It's just with everything with Kitty, I don't want that to be the case with us." Sammi said looking over at Jubilee. 

"How did you know about that?" Lgan asked surprised. 

"Same way we know a lot about all of you. You and Jubilee are tied in being my favorite heroes. Gambit is the next, followed by Bobby. I just couldn't get over the fact that he's accountant." Sammi said laughing looking at his face and seeing the surprised look on it. 

"I'm going to go and talk to her, Ok?" Sammi said as she got up and walked over to Maria and Jubilee, who were fighting over whether or not they should play the ultimate prank. 

"I think you should, but do me a favor and don't do it on my dad or Sabertooth. I don't think I could handle that." Sammi said smiling. 

"Me, too. Besides, you can imagine what Wolvie would do to her." Jubilee said looking at Sammi and smiling. 

"What HE would do to her? Think about me I would be scared for life." Sammi said looking at Jubes. She turned to Maria and said," Go with the safe bet. Remy. I think he would thrive on the attention, besides, it will give us a chance to see if all his talk is true." Sammi said smiling evilly. 

"You are so bad." Jubes said smiling the same. 

Leilee came over to the group and asked," So, what are all of you talking about?" 

Sammi and Jubilee started laughing and Maria started to turn invisible. 

"We're just trying to figure out if Remy is suave as he says he is." Sammi said and then looking at Jubilee asked," Can we talk?" 

"Sure." Jubilee said. 

Sammi looked at Maria and Leilee and said," I'll catch you guys later." And Sammi and Jubes walked away. They found a spot over by the side of the house and Sammi asked. "I a) wanted to thank you for the suit and b) I was wondering what do think about me being Logan's daughter?" 

Jubilee was surprised, this was the first time in along time that someone asked her what she thought. 

"You're welcome for the suit. I saw it and knew it would be perfect. As for you being Logan's daughter, I think its great. I'm a little confused about it but I like it. I always wanted a big sister type." 

"I'm confused about it, too. I'm glad you like it. I always wanted a sister, too. I mean with Jamar I already have a brother. But sometimes you just need a sister. Ya know?" Sammi said giving Jubilee a hug. 

Jubilee hugged her back and said, "I know." 

They hugged for a little while and then Sammi said," I really hate to cut this short but I need to think about a few things. I'm going to go for a walk, OK?" 

"No prob. If you need to talk I'm here, sis." Jubilee said smiling. 

"Same here, sis." Sammi said as she walked away. 

She walked down to the lake, she put Jubilee's shirt on because she was starting to get a little cold out of the pool. She stood on the deck and looked up to the sky. It was beautiful. There were so many stars out and she immediately found Orian, Leo, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. 

She stood looking at the stars and thinking about Jonas. She wanted to talk to him about what happened, but most of all she just wanted him to hold her and never let go. 

"Thank you, Aphrodite." She said to herself. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

While Sammi was walking, Amanda and Jonas was talking. Jonas had asked for the full account and Amanda had relayed it to the best of her abilities, with the help of her protectors. Jonas nodded his head occasionally. 

"Are you sure you are up to this? It is a bond till death." Jonas asked. 

"I am sure." replied Amanda. 

Jonas nodded. Amanda wanted to talk to him more. She wanted to apologize for failing him. She wanted to apologize for not being the leader she should have been. She wanted to apologize for not being the friend she should have been. 

"So, I guessed you heard about Charles and me?" she asked. 

Jonas smiled. He knew what she want to talk about. The others had told him about the funeral and her speech. Charles had also mentioned something about what happened in the woods, though Jonas believed he had edited a few parts. Parts Jonas was curious about. Maybe he would need to rattle it out of her. He smiled. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb finished her fourth drink. Ryan was good at sneaking drinks to her and Ange. Well, she was getting a little bit crazy. Ange only had a couple so he was fine. Teb was dancing around to the music. She was singing along and fell down into Anges lap. 

"Whoops, haha." she laughed. 

"Chica, you ok?" Ange asked concerned. 

"Oh, I'm fine now." she said and kissed Ange on the lips. 

"Okay." said Ange. 

Teb kissed him on the mouth and then on the neck and around his collar bone. 

"Chica, what are you doing?" 

"Mmm... I love you angelo." 

"I love you too, chica." 

Teb ran her fingers through his hair and kissed him deeper. 

"Chica..." Ange said and looked at all the people around them. 

Teb stopped and gave Ange an angry look. 

"Forget you then." she got up and walked away from him. 

Teb got a few more drinks and then went to see who else she could find. She saw Jono sitting on the couch inside. 

She walked up and jumped on him. 

"Hey Jono." she said. 

~Hey Teb~ he noticed she was just in a bathing suit ~Aren't you cold?~ 

"No, not really. You look cute tonight." she said and flicked his floppy hair. She snuggled up next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. 

~Thank you. Where's Ange?~ 

"Gee, I don't know." 

~I havn't seen much of you from the time we've been here. Gen-X has pretty much kept our distance with all the drama going on.~ 

~Teb?~ 

Teb was passed out on his shoulder. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

_==Note==  
Stars (**) indicate telepathy  
Slashes (//) indicate thoughts  
Colons (::) indicate talk from another personality  
==End Note==_

The noise was carrying throughout the mansion as Jamar grabbed a bottle of wine, and went for a walk. He'd been doing much of that lately. He didn't even go to the Danger Room with the others to practice. He didn't really see the need. He'd just spaz out and become one of a hundred different people, mutants, whatever. 

/I really should tell Sammi the headaches have started back. It looks like I left one world only to die in another./ 

::Why should you tell her anything? Let her be happy Jamar.:: 

/Maybe you're right./ 

::I just wish there were some more ladies here.:: 

::Like someone's gonna be interested in dating a schizo freak like us.:: 

Jamar continues walking away from the pool and through the side of the mansion. 

Logan watches as Jamar leaves, and remembers something that Sammi had mentioned before she left. 

"Dad something's wrong with Jamar. He's been closed off for weeks now." Sammi had said. 

"Well darlin. We've all been stressed over the whole Sinister thing." Logan had replied. 

"Maybe you're right." Sammi had said. 

But as Logan watches Jamar, he's not so sure that's the only thing troubling him. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jamar comes out the other side of the mansion. Having finished the bottle of wine, the bottle shatters as it's flash frozen and then incinerated. He hears talking as he enters the clearing. 

"Hey Jonas, Amanda, Dragons. How's it goin?" 

Everyone seems startled as they realize what Jamar's just said. Jamar continues to walk on but Amanda stops him. 

"Jamar, you can see them?" 

"Yeah. See ya." 

"Jamar where are you going?" Amanda asks. The smell of wine is strong on his breath. 

::"We're going where we wanna go. What's it to ya?":: 

"J. you're too drunk to go anywhere. Why don't you come back with us to the party." Jonas says as he takes hold of Jamar. 

::"Let us go.":: With that last outburst a purple orb of fire surrounds him and he implodes with a hiss and a pop. 

Amanda and Jonas look around and realize they are standing in a large crater and the trees have been scorched clean of leaves. 

"Amanda, is he...?" 

"No, he's still alive. I can catch a glimmer of him on the astral plane. It seems he teleported." 

"I didn't know he could do that. We better tell the others." 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After Maria had shown her how to use the clothing replicator, Athena managed to put together a swimsuit. A nice little deep green one piece that criss-crossed in back. She managed to create a matching wrap and sandals too. Athena had always been conservative and swimsuits made her nervous. 

She looked at herself in the mirror and then sat back down on Bobby's bed. By the time she had gotten to his room he was gone and she was thankful for the privacy. She had never been very courageous about wearing swimsuits. As she idly twirled a lock of her hair, she wondered if anyone would notice if she didn't go to the party. Then she stood and walked to the door. 

She had been the one to talk Bobby into going in the first place. She opened the door and cautiously glanced both ways before exiting the room. She was relieved to find the hall empty. As she descended the stairs, she began to envy Maria's invisibility. She slowly reached the door leading out to the pool and stopped. Thinking now or never, she took a deep breath and walked outside. 

**snowbaby**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara was bored...she sat by the pool letting her feet trail in the water. She'd had fun swimming, but she was tired of that now. She looked around at all of the people. Amanda, Jonas, Jamar and Sammi had all left...Teb was inside, passed out on Jono... Angelo had gone after Teb, then stalked off somewhere after seeing them... Ryan was snuggled up to Sabertooth, Wolverine was watching them. Maria and Leilee were talking...Cara didn't know what about. She didn't want to interrupt. 

Cara sighed, and leaned back, putting both hands palms down on the cement. Suddenly, involuntary streaks of light shot out from her hands and ran across the ground behind her... one made its way to and up the patio table. It and the drinks on the table began to glow... another streak of light made its way up the wall. 

~KAAABOOOOOOM!!!~ All of the drinks on the table exploded, sending shards of glass everywhere. 

~KAAABOOOOOOM!!!~ the table blew apart right after the drinks. 

~KAAABOOOOOOM!!!~ half of the lights in the pool area exploded, leaving the side that Cara was on in darkness. All that could be seen of Cara were her wide glowing red eyes. 

No one was hurt, but everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over at Cara, their eyes wide with shock. Wolverine looked at the wasted beer, and groaned. 

Cara's glowing red eyes were also wide with shock...her jaw hung down and her face was white as a sheet...it soon turned bright pink with embarrassment. 

She closed one eye and said, "EEP!!!" 

Cara quickly jumped to her feet and took off running. She vaulted over the cement wall surrounding the pool area, and took off running across the grounds. 

**Rainfall**

Ryan ran off after Cara. She didn't know what had caused the accident but she was worried about her. Cara was like a little sister to Ryan. She wanted to make sure she was ok. 

Not being the best tracker in the world Ryan ended up getting lost in the backyard. 

/Oh, Great this is wonderful./ She thought to herself as she tried to backtrack to the pool. 

Ryan cam through the some brush to see Sammi's friend sitting on a log thinking. It looked like he was talking to himself. 

"Hi, Jamar, right?" She said as she approached him. " I'm a little lost.. I came after Cara because she seemed upset but now… I don't know where I am? Can you point me in the direction of the house?" 

Jamar smiled at the girl, he really didn't know her all that well but she seemed nice enough. Sammi and Jonas had made peace with her and she seemed to have brought the best out in Sabretooth. 

"I think if you follow that path it will take you back to the house and then you can follow the voices back to the pool." he said. 

"Thanks." Ryan turned to leave but then turned back around. "Are you ok? I don't want to barge into your business or anything like that but if you want to talk I have a great ear. Plus I can crack a really horrible joke at really bad times guaranteed to make you laugh. " She said smiling at Jamar. He seemed to be troubled by something. 

**Le Fae**

Athena had also gone after Cara. She had been following Ryan, but in the dark woods surrounding the house, she lost sight of her. She continued in the direction she had seen Cara go in, and soon found her sitting against a tree. Her knees drawn toward her chest, she was crying softly. Athena sat down in front of Cara and put her arms around the girl. 

After a long while she said, "It's going to be o-kay. I don't know what happened back there and I'm sure you don't either. No one is going to be upset with you. I'm sure everyone will understand. We all have these new powers and I don't think anyone expects us to have complete control over them so soon." 

"Accidents happen, and that's what that was, an accident. I'm sure it happens to everyone. In order to gain control of our newfound powers, we are all going to have to face the fact that we each have limits. We really are only all powerful together. So, if you hide here in the woods, your making the whole team weaker." 

"Take a deep breath and let's get back. We can talk to the others about what happened. Maybe there is an exlplanation for it. Maybe it's related to your emotions or thoughts. What were you thinking just before it happened?" Athena tried to smile as she comforted Cara. It just broke her heart to see any of her friends in pain. 

**snowbaby**

**_~Ryan and Jamar~_**

"I appreciate the offer but no one can help u...me." ::Nice save.:: "What will happen can't be stopped." Jamar tone changes to one of pure sadness. Through the mist of tears Ryan can see his eyes have become swirling rainbows. 

"Jamar, I can tell you need a friend. What's wrong?" she asked. 

In a maelstrom of emotion, Jamar lets loose and the thing he's been trying to hide from everyone comes out. 

"My headaches have started again and I think I'm gonna die. I can't tell the others, especially Sammi. I told **her I was in the hospital before arriving here but she thinks it was just the ward. For the past year they had me on the floor for the terminally ill."** 

Ryan gasps as she realizes that he'd spoken some of that directly into her head. His emotions were so thick that she started crying. 

"You've gotta tell Sammi." 

::"No, Jamar can't tell Sammi. It'll hurt her too much. She just found her dad and we won't spoil her happiness. If you truly are wanting to be our friend you won't tell her.":: 

"I...I promise. I won't say a thing." 

::"Thank You!!!":: 

Jamar takes her hand and in a flash of purple fire they are back by the mansion. Ryan heads back over to the pool to look for Sabretooth while Jamar just stands there. 

::How bout another bottle of wine or two or three?:: 

"That sounds great." 

"Mind if I join you kid? Although three bottles may be too much for ya." 

Jamar turns to regard Logan as the full weight of what he said drives home. 

"You heard Zekk? But that's impossible, they either speak through me or to me. None of them has ever talked to anyone while I'm in control. I think I need something stronger than wine." he says as he plops down on the ground as if his legs could no longer support him. 

Logan noted that his heart was racing and his scent had changed. 

"Kid I think we need to get you to the medlab quick." 

Jamar stood up and then tripped, falling into the darkness. 

**Chaos**


	23. Reality Bites-Part 23

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 23

**

Ryan walked over to Victor and kissed him on the cheek. "Did you find Cara?" He asked knowing very well that she didn't. Sabretooth didn't smell Cara's scent on Ryan, he smelled another man's scent on her. 

"No, I got lost and then ran into Jamar. " Ryan knew that Victor could tell who she had talked to and wondered what game he was playing with her. 

"What did you two talk about?" Victor said looking into her eyes. 

He was doing his best to control his anger. Victor kept telling himself that Ryan wouldn't do anything to hurt him and his senses told him the same. The animal in Victor Creed was angry though, he didn't like anyone touching his woman. To his credit Victor controlled the animal in him. 

"Not much..." Ryan said, trying to avoid the subject. 

She didn't want to lie to Victor but she didn't want to betray Jamar's trust either. She looked over to Jamar to see him fall and Logan catch him. Ryan turned to Victor. 

"Can you please find Sammi? I think she should know about this." she asked. 

Victor took off into the forest following his nose after Sammi but turned around just in time to see Ryan fussing over Jamar with Logan. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Amanda and Jonas were talking and walking along. They were both avoiding what they were most interested in talking about. Jonas decided to break the ice and jump into the fire. 

"Amanda..." He started to say, but he stopped... he guessed he was not ready after all. But Amanda saw that something was troubling him. 

"You ok?" Amanda said, concerned. 

Jonas tried a stifled laugh, glad he could no longer cry. 

"Death sort of put thing's in perspective." he said. 

He looked up at the stars and let it all out. "What if I really did die." Jonas eyes fixated, and it was almost as if they glowed as his catlike eyes reflected the moonlight. 

"I... don't know, but I'm glad you're back. That is all I care about." Amanda said feeling how sad he was. 

"But... what if he is not back?" Jonas stuttered out the words, his own fear at the max. "What if I'm not really Jonas... what if he really died and I'm simply a model after him, having his memories." 

Jonas concentrated on his new found magical powers, and combined with his modeling skill he controlled the ground to form a statue of himself; how he looked before his death, uniform and all. 

Amanda looked at the statue and back at Jonas. He had been rather tight lipped about what he could do. 

"It's really good Jonas... it's amazing." Amanda looked at Jonas. 

Jonas held up his open hand and turning his hand slightly the statue moved it's head to look up at the stars, it's face turned into a smile. 

"Yes, maybe he was... but maybe I'm not him... maybe all that is him..." he violently closed his hand and the statue turned to dry dust and shattered in the wind. 

"Jonas, please..." Amanda said becoming more sad... what if he was right and Jonas was really dead, and this person was... no this WAS Jonas, she could feel it. 

They stood still for a moment. 

Surprisingly to both of them, Thanagar broke the silence. 

"Both of you don't trust yourselves, but you have blind loyalty to each other." he laughed. 

"Jonas, I'm sorry that I failed you." Amanda said out of the blue. "I'm sorry that I failed your trust in me as a leader." Amanda bit her lip, how could he act so calm about it? 

Jonas grabbed Amanda by the shoulder. "HEY, never ever dare to blame yourself... I curse myself about what happened... there is no need for you to curse yourself about what happened to me, you could have done nothing to prevent it." 

"I don't trust myself for what I have become, you have not changed, you are the same. There is no need for you to think you have failed yourself." Jonas said still holing her in an iron grip. 

"Why don't you trust yourself..." Amanda said trying to get him to let go... she was not about to admit that she was wrong about herself, but Jonas should not blame himself for something that was her fault. 

Jonas let go. "Why? Look at Me." he lifted one of his arms, exposing his gills. "I'm not supposed to have gills. This is not me, look at my eyes." 

"I'm not human any more!" Jonas yelled, and in his wrath, caused the ground around them to almost boil. 

**Admiral**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

In the medlab, Logan, Beast, and Ryan huddle around Jamar. 

"How's the kid doing Hank?" 

"It's rocky... if things do not change. . ." Beast trails off as Sammi walks into the room followed by the others. 

The sound of the life monitor wails a flatline for several seconds before beeping once again. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Even the full assembly of Vision-X, Gen-X, and the X-men pales in comparison with the crowd gathering within Jamar's mind. 

Zekk::Jamar!:: 

Davie::jaY MaR?:: 

Donnavon::JAMAR!?:: 

Carl::J-Man!!?:: 

The group continues to grow, each calling to Jamar at the same time in their own way. Some Jamar knows, others he does not... while yet others stay hidden in the shadows. 

/Alright I hear ya. Give me a break, eh!/ Jamar's voice says faintly to the host of beings. 

Zekk is the first to speak up, quieting the throng. 

Zekk::HEY people, quiet down. All the talk is just given J a headache, not to mention giving me one. We have a big problem peeps. Jamar can't handle the strain. He knows it....We know it.:: 

Donnavon::What do you suggest Zekk? Since you are the first among us you know Jamar better.:: 

Carl::Zekk knows what must be done to protect the core.:: 

Screams of protest fill the air as a voice from the back of the crowd echoes through the assembly. 

::Tell us Zekk what should we do.:: 

Zekk::Hello Loes I was waiting for you to join us.:: Everyone backs away from the two men as they embrace. 

Zeklos::we shall become one. The addition of our added powers to the core will keep J alive.:: 

Davie:: What'll happen to jaY MaR hunh? From what the others say he might not ever be the same.:: 

Zeklos:: That's a chance we'll have ta take. I'll be there to guide him.:: 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jamar rises up in the bed suddenly startling everyone and begins pulling the IV and sensors from his body and throwing Ryan a glare. As he falls from the bed the form of Zeklos appears pulling him to his feet. 

**Chaos**

Sabretooth pulled Ryan closer to him protectively. He didn't know what this kid's problem was, but he didn't want Ryan getting involved with it. She turned around and looked him in the eyes and he eased up on his grip. She could be even more stubborn then him at times. 

Jamar was struggling with Hank about getting back in bed. Hank didn't know what was going on but he didn't think after what happened earlier he should be getting up like that. 

"Please Jamar get back in bed Hank needs to examine you." Sammi said eyeing the form, which stood by Jamar. 

Ryan walked closer to him and whispered in his ear. Jamar started to chuckle and then lay back in bed for Hank to examine him. Ryan looked at the figure beside Jamar and walked back to Victor's side. 

"What did you say to him frail?" He asked looking at her. 

"If I wanted you to know I would have said it out loud." She said smiling at him. He gave her a hard look and then glared at Jamar. Ryan put her hand to his face and kissed him gently on the lips. 

"It's ok." She said trying to calm him down. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~Forest~

_**

Cara bit her lip, and swiped at the remaining tears on her face. She looked at Athena, who was trying to smile. Athena was being such a good friend to her...Cara didn't want to worry her. She sighed shakily and tried to smile back. 

"Thank you Athena...I'm really glad you're here...I was so embarrassed and upset...I didn't mean to ruin the party...I feel a lot better now, though. Let's go back." She said, and stood up. 

Athena smiled and put her arm around Cara's shoulder...Cara leaned her head on Athena's shoulder as they walked back to the mansion. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

When Cara and Athena got back to the pool, they found out from Angelo that Jamar had been rushed to the medlab. 

"Oh no!!! What happened? Is he okay?" Cara asked Angelo. 

Angelo shrugged. 

"I've got to go see. I'll see you later Athena...thanks for talking to me!" Cara said, and she rushed into the mansion. 

Bobby came and put his arm around Athena's shoulder...Athena stared after Cara with a worried look on her face. She knew there was something troubling the girl, but every time she asked Cara what was wrong, Cara always avoided the subject completely. Athena didn't know what to do. Athena rested her head on Bobby's shoulder, and let him lead her into the mansion. 

**_

~Medlab~

_**

Beast looked at all of the people in the room who were gathered around Jamar. He cleared his throat, and everyone turned to look at him. Beast sighed. 

"I know all of you care about Jamar, but he really needs his rest...I must ask you all to leave for a few hours so he may do so... Please." he asked. 

Sammi looked as though she was about to argue...she didn't want to leave Jamar in his time of need...Wolverine placeed his hand gently on her elbow, and Sammi looked at him for a few moments. Finally, Sammi sighed, and nodded. She walked over to Jamar, leaned over and gave him a hug. 

"I'll be close by if you need me...sleep well Jamar." she said, and allowed Wolverine to lead her out of the room. 

One by one, the members of Vision-X and X-Men left the room...they made Beast promise that he would alert them if anything happened at all. 

Hank sighed again, and he picked up the blood sample he'd gotten from Jamar. He checked on Jamar who seemed to be asleep, then he walked out of the room and across the hall to where more of his examining equipment was. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

When she heard Beast close the door of the room, Cara poked her head out of the closet she was hiding in...she was still embarrassed about the explosions, and didn't want to meet a lot of people at the moment, so she waited while they left. Cara tiptoed into the med lab...she wanted to see for herself if Jamar was alright. 

Cara saw that Jamar seemed to be asleep...she crept silently over to a chair in the corner of the room, and curled up in a ball. She was still wearing her swimsuit, she hadn't had time to change, but she'd found an extra lab coat in the closet and was wearing that over her suit. 

She didn't want to let this guy out of her sight...she was worried about him...and she felt a connection to him. They were both ill. Nobody knew it...she never talked about it because she didn't want to worry anyone, but she had been ill most of her life. She was in constant pain...some days were better than others...but the pain was still there. It was the one constant thing in her life. 

She'd gotten so sick as a child, there were people who thought she wouldn't live to see age 17...but she'd proved them wrong. Her next big goal was to live to see age 21... and after that, age 40. If she lived to see that, she'd try for age 80... but one could only think so far ahead. 

Cara sighed and put her head in her hands. /There's another thing he and I have in common...he has multiple personalities...I had Arac. But did Jamar's alternate personalities ever try to kill him, or anyone else? Mine did...I'm not sure how to handle that./ Cara thought to herself. 

She looked over at the sleeping Jamar, and then rubbed her forehead with both hands. 

/I'd like to talk to him...but I really don't want to add my problems to his...I better just keep my mouth shut./ she thought to herself. 

Cara got up out of the chair and started to walk out of the room. Zeklos stepped out of the shadows, and watched her go. He'd heard what she'd been thinking. 

**Rainfall**

/They both worry so much about others. Their happiness had always been short lived. I will make it my duty to help them./ 

"Sleep well 'First One'!" Zeklos says before walking through the wall after Cara. 

Cara leaves the mansion heading back toward the pool. Everyone had decided to do other things so the pool was empty. /It's not fair the way things are turning out. None of us may make it through the upcoming events./ She pauses her musings as a cough racks her body. 

**You are no stranger to pain are you?** 

Cara looks around before noticing a reflection cast, in the water, of a young man resembling a disembodied spirit from Star Wars. 

"Who are you?" 

"I'm a...close friend of Jamar's and I know he would not wish for you to be sad over him. You two are kindred spirits I think. If he had not met you in this world he surely would have met you in another." 

Cara shifts her attention away from the water and to the shimmering figure beside her. The figures eyes remind her of someone she once saw in a dream. Zeklos turns away disappearing as Ryan and Creed walk up to join her. 

**Chaos**

Cara watched as Zeklos disappeared...he really did remind her of someone...and she remembered who. The man from her dream that she thought of as her guardian angel. He'd been there for her when no one else could hear her cry. She wondered... 

Then Cara noticed Ryan and Sabretooth...Ryan looked really worried. 

"Cara, where were you? I looked for you but I couldn't find you...are you alright?" she asked. 

Cara smiled, and gave Ryan a hug. 

"I'm alright Ryan...I didn't mean to worry you. I'm a little tired though, so I'm going to go inside now and try to get some sleep...you two enjoy yourselves, okay?" Cara said, as she smiled at both Ryan and Creed. 

Cara looked up at Creed...and smiled. 

"You know, Mr. Creed...you may not like me much...but I'm really glad you're here. I always thought that you should have a second chance...I'm glad you've found one with Ryan. You two are really good for each other. Life really is too short...I hope you two make the most of it." Cara said...then she hugged the rather startled Sabertooth. 

Cara let go, hugged Ryan again, then turned and went inside. Sabertooth was still staring after her with his jaw hanging open and his eyes wide with shock. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Cara made her way to her room...she really was tired...all of the recent events were taking their toll on her. Her cough was back...she'd had it since her last bout with phnemonia, and that was over a year ago. It came and went...she was used to it, but she was really tired of being on the end of the Yo-Yo. She was glad that Leilee was somewhere else with Gambit...she didn't want her to ask questions. 

/I really do hope that Jamar is okay...I want to get to know him better...things have been a little too wild around here for me to really talk to him...well, maybe tomorrow. I hope you have good dreams, Jamar.../ Cara thought sleepily as she climbed into bed and snuggled into the covers. Soon she was fast asleep. 

**_

~Amanda and Jonas~

_**

Tears were streaming down Amanda's face...the pain and misery that Jonas felt was overwhelming. How could she help him...how could she make him understand? 

"Jonas, Don't say that!!! Don't you understand that being human is more than just having the body of one? The true sense of being human lies not in the shell, but in the spirit!!! Your spirit didn't die...it lives!!! You LIVE...no matter what you look like, or what happened to you...you ARE Jonas, you will always BE Jonas!" Amanda cried out. 

**_

~Cara's Room~

_**

Cara was dreaming. In the dream, she was in her house at home, walking through the hallways. Somewhere, somehow, she could hear a man crying. He sounded like he was in so much pain...It broke her heart to hear it. She ran through the house, calling to the person who was crying, trying to find him, but she couldn't find him anywhere. Distraught, Cara fell on her hands and knees in the middle of the living room and began to cry. Then Cara woke up. 

She sat upright in bed, and looked around the room. Sighing, she fell back against the pillows, and stared up at the ceiling. 

There was never anyone else in the house in that dream...just the sound of the man crying. It bothered Cara greatly. She hated for anyone to be in pain...she really wished she could find him. 

Cara began to sing softly to herself...it was something she did when she was having trouble sleeping in the middle of the night. The song was one of her own...she'd written it a year ago when things had gotten bad for her. 

_"I walk in the rain. A river of tears surrounds me, drowns me.  
Sorrow closes in, tries to pull me in, my head begins to spin.  
I walk in the rain. The thunder crashes, echoing, calling.  
Voicing my despair, to anyone who's there, does anybody care? _

Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Heal my heart. Help me make a new start.  
Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Nourish my soul, as you'd Nourish a rose. 

I walk in the rain. The lightning strikes above me, blinds me.  
Hot white streaks of light, penetrate the night, shadows fade from sight.  
I walk in the rain, with the wind, whispering around me, comforting.  
Singing it's song, "You've got to carry on, you've got to hold on." 

Singing it's song, "You've got to carry on, you've got to be strong." 

Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Heal my heart. Help me make a new start.  
Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Nourish my soul, as you'd Nourish a rose. 

Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Heal my heart. Help me make a new start.  
Rain, please wash away this pain I feel.  
Nourish my soul, as you'd Nourish a rose. 

Nourish my Soul...as you'd Nourish a Rose..." 

Cara fingers her rose necklace as she sings the last verse. The song was the reason she'd bought the necklace in the first place. For her, rain didn't mean sadness. Rain meant nourishment... healing. She always felt better when it rained. She had good childhood memories of it...back when things were better. 

Cara rolled over on her side, and went back to sleep. 

_//**Author's note: This is an original song titled "Rain", written by me; it can also be found on fanfiction.net under my pen name, Rae Street. Please do not use it without my permission.**//_

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

"So what did you tell him?" Ryan and Sabretooth where still outside by the pool. Sabretooth was still grilling Ryan about Jamar. He was jealous and Ryan thought it was the cutest thing in the world. 

"None of your business." She said simply and turned to leave. 

Sabretooth grabbed her arm and turned her around. "Don't mess with me like this frail." 

She smiled up at him and kissed him on the lips. "I love it when you get jealous. It's so cute. If you must know I told him that if he didn't settle down I was going to tell you to eat him." 

He looked at her and smiled "I don't like playing games frail and I wasn't jealous." 

"Ok, if you say so." 

"I wasn't." 

"I believe you. So if your not jealous I am going to check on Jamar. Ok?" 

"He's got enough people checking on him. You're coming with me upstairs." With that Sabretooth picked Ryan up and carried her upstairs. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Leilee sat up suddenly, woken from a deep sleep. Remy was lying next to her, nude with a sheet draped over his hips. Leilee blushed softly thinking about the events that had led up to this position. 

But that was besides the point. Something had woken her up.....but what? Reaching over, she grabbed one of Remy's teeshirts that covered her like a nightgown. After slipping it on, she stood up and walked down the hall. Turn left.....right....another right....Stop. She stood in front of the Medlab door. This is what had called her. 

She stepped into the room and looked around. Hank had fallen asleep at the computer. Again. Jamar was asleep in the bed. He looked so innocent while he slept. But she could feel the disease eating away from him. Leilee laid her hands on him and let her power destroy the abomination that had infected him. As the color increased in his face, she smiled and turned away. She had destroyed the disease, but now it was up to him to heal himself. With this thought, she turned and went back to her and Remy's room. 

**Leilee**

**_~Jonas and Amanda~_**

Jonas stared at Amanda...she seemed so sincere, could he believe her? Could he really consider himself human, after everything that happened? 

"NO!!!" Jonas shouted, and the ground boiled with his anger. 

His huge bat-like wings sprouted from his shoulder blades, and he took to the air...flying as fast and as far as he could away from Amanda and the mansion. 

"NO! JONAS!!!" Amanda cried out...but Jonas wouldn't listen. Amanda watched him go with tears in her eyes. She had failed him again. 

Thanagar and Azmaru, the two dragon guardians, stared after Jonas as well. They turned back to Amanda. 

(No, you have not failed him...he must have time absorb what you said, and to heal.) said Azmaru. 

(Give him time...he will be back. Let us now return to the mansion...you must rest.) added Thanagar. 

The two psychic images of the dragons disappeared back into Amanda's head, and she was left standing alone. She stared in the direction that Jonas had flown...then wiping the tears from her face, she tiredly made her way back home. HOME!? When and why exactly did she begin to consider the mansion her HOME!? 

/Charles, that's why...wherever he is, I am home./ she thought. 

Amanda was too tired to face anyone...and she didn't know what to tell them about Jonas. She decided to leave it for the next day, and she made her way into the mansion and up to her room using an alternate route, so she wouldn't run into anyone. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~The Next Morning~

_**

Xavier sat in his study watching the sun rise through his window. 

/What a night. Things are growing more chaotic around here but really when are things truly calm in this house./ 

**I'd say never Professor.** 

Xavier's eyes shift throughout the room scanning for a presence. Finally settling on the wall to his right as young man with a long black mane steps through it. He bows at the waist and stands before the Professor's desk. 

"I am Zeklos." 

"I'd heard from the others about you. You appear to be a totally psionic entity." 

"Do not worry, I am nothing near as bad as the previous psionic entities you've come in contact with. I am the culmination of several of Jamar's personalities. I can't say I am made up of all of Jamar's subconscious because those I do not know how many personalities the 'First One' has. He could ultimately be considered the personification of chaos. I know it pains you to hear this because Jamar reminds you so much of David. But If you do not, he will suffer a much worse fate than Legion. Where as your son lost his life, Jamar may lose his soul." 

"What can I..." 

"I must go for now and tend to the 'First One'." 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

In the Medlab, Jamar awakes along with a power within him that has been used by one of GenX's greatest enemies. 

**Chaos**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan got up out of bed and Victor stirred. "Where you going frail?" He said as she got up and out of bed. 

"I just want to make sure he is ok. He looked so sick in bed." She sat back down on the bed and looked into Victor's eyes. "I don't like feeling helpless. When I was little I was in the hospital for some kidney problems. I cried all night every night I was there. I was scared of being alone. I just want him to know that he's not. Please Victor, you have nothing to worry about." 

Victors look softened. "Alright, I guess I can't keep you from having guy's for friends. Besides if you ever did do anything I would know about it." He said gesturing his nose. "And then I would kill you both." 

"I love you too." 

Ryan left the room and made her way down to the med lab. She cracked open the door to see Jamar sitting up in bed. 

"What did I tell you about being a good patient?" Ryan said walking into the room. 

Jamar turns to her and doesn't seem to recognize her at first. "What?" 

"Are you ok? Do you need me wake Hank up?" She said rushing over to his side. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi sat in th kitchen with Logan. They wear drinking coffee but neither was talking. She didn't know what to do. Jamar's personalities seemed to be taken over and she was helpless to stop them. When they were kids there were only three, but now there were more. And she could feel that some of them didn't like her and that scared her. That reminded her of Arac, what if..NO she wasn't going to think about that. She stood up and started walking out of the kitchen. 

"Where you goin', darlin'?" Logan asked as she got up. 

"I have to see Jamar and no one is going to stop me." She said as she left. 

As she got close to the medlab she smelled Ryan was there. Sammi opened the door and saw ryan talking to Jamar who was sitting up in bed. 

"Jamar, What's going on? Really. I know there's something your not telling me, so spill." Sammi said as she walked to stand next to Ryan. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~Cara's Room~

_**

Cara woke up...something was nagging her in the back of her mind...it took a few seconds for her to realize what it was. 

Her eyes widened with shock. 

"Oh my HECK!!! It's my birthday!!! I totally, totally forgot!!! I am now 18 years old!!!" Cara said in complete surprise. 

She couldn't go back to sleep after that...so she got out of bed, put some clothes on and ran out of the room. 

Cara wandered down the hallways of the mansion...she was bored and wanted to find something to do. She decided to locate Beast and borrow a book from him, so she walked in the direction of the medlab. 

As Cara neared the medlab, she heard Sammi's voice. "...I know there's something you're not telling me, so spill." 

Cara crept over to the open doorway of the medlab, and flattened herself against the wall on one side of the doorway...out of sight but within hearing distance. 

She wasn't sure if she should go in or not...Jamar seemed to have all the company he needed at the moment, but she was still worried, and wanted to know what was going on. 

The hair on the back of Cara's neck stood up on end, and a shiver ran down her spine. Something was wrong...she could feel it. The air around the medlab seemed to be electrified, like something was about to happen. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb woke up... she was practically on Jono. 

/Oh my gosh.../ she thought to herself. She quickly got up and realized all she was wearing was a skimpy bikini. 

/Oh my gosh.../ she thought again as she hurried to her room and got dressed. 

/Oh my gosh/ she thought yet again as her hangover kicked in. She went to the kitchen to get some coffee and some aspirin. 

When she got to the kitchen, Jono was already up making coffee. He had some Advil on the table waiting for her. 

"What happened?" Teb asked. 

~You got drunk and passed out on me.~ Jono replied. 

"W-what about Ange?" Teb asked. 

Jono handed her a cup of coffee, and gave her a thoughtful look. 

"Sh**." Teb cursed herself and sat down and rubber the side of her head 

**TEB**

**_

~Medlab~

_**

"Nothing's going on, Sammi so just leave it...alone okay." Jamar says as he gives Ryan a look. Sammi catches it right away. 

"There is something wrong and I won't just leave it alone. You're in on this too, aren't you Ryan?" 

"In on what Sammi?" Ryan says playing dumb. 

Sammi can tell that she's lying and begins to let out a growl that'd make Wolverine and Sabretooth both cringe. 

**Cara, it's okay, come on in.** 

/Do ya really think I should? Sammi's about to blow./ 

**Don't worry about it, I can handle my sis.** The image of Jamar smiling evilly creeps into her mind along with his plan of action. 

"Bye sis!" 

"What?!" 

Jamar's eyes ripple changing into a swirling mix of rainbow colors and Sammi vanishes from the room as Cara walks in. 

"'First One' that wasn't a smart move... she'll most certainly be back with Mr. Logan. Plus you shouldn't exercise your powers in the medlab." 

"Why not?" 

"Just trust me okay." 

**Chaos**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

"OOHMP!" Was the only sound to escape Sammi as she landed on the ground. 

She looked around and saw that she wasn't in the medlab anymore. She was outside. She got to her feet, cursing and screaming all the way. 

/That's it. If you're not going to talk to me nicely, we're doing this the hard way./ She thought as she stomped back to the house. /I wonder if he remembers that I always get what I want and right now I want answers!!/ 

She opened the door to the kitchen to see a very surprised Logan and Warren looking at her. She walked passed them not saying a word. When she heard Logan tell Warren that he was going to follow she turned around and said,"NO! YOU stay! I'm handling this, MY WAY!!" And she was gone. 

She walked to the medlab and opened the door to see Jamar, Ryan, and Cara all talking. 

"I'm sorry to break this up, but I need to talk to him, NOW!!" Sammi said through clenched teeth. 

She turned to Jamar and said, "DON"T you ever do that again!!!!!!" She walked over to the vaccine and took one of the samples and said,"YOU see this? Its our only hope of not ending up like Jonas, did. If you use your powers in the medlab again, I'm gonna use mine on you!!! GOT that, Bro?" 

**jubilee_79**

Ryan and Cara cringed as Sammi yelled at Jamar. They both could tell that Sammi was mad and glad that they were not on the receiving end of that anger. Although Ryan could tell that Sammi was more then just a little angry with her as well. Both girls tried to plea with Sammi to calm down but it didn't look like that was going to happen. 

"Look... he is my bro, and I deserve to know what is going on with him. " 

"Hey how about we change the subject? When do you think we will be heading over to Sinister's tomorrow Sammi?" Ryan said, trying to take some of the heat off of Jamar and change the mood of the room a little. Both Sammi and Jamar looked like they were going to explode. 

**Le Fae**

If you use your powers in the medlab again, I'm gonna use mine on you!!! GOT that, Bro?" 

"IS THAT A THREAT **SIS**? BECAUSE I DON'T THINK YOU CAN BACK IT UP!" 

"Oh I can and then some, BUB!" 

Jamar and Sammi don't even hear Ryan and Cara any more as their exchange of words grows louder and louder. 

Come on guys chill out. They both shoot Ryan an icy glare. 

::Let me out!!!:: Something inside Jamar's mind snaps as a loud crash is heard. ::Freedom:: 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sabretooth walked into the kitchen in search of Ryan. As much as it grated on his nerves to be in the same room with Logan he got some small measure of satisfaction knowing Logan was having the same feelings tenfold. /Heh Heh Heh!/ 

Creed pushes past Warren heading for the fridge. Upon close inspection he locates the last beer which he slashes open with his teeth spraying a good measure on Warren. 

"Sorry wings." Creed says with a smirk. 

"Ya better behave Creed or I'll..." Wolverine stops suddenly. 

"Or you'll...what the hell?" Creed exclaims as his senses picks up the smell of blood and sounds of battle. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Kyle::Wanna play sis? If so lets go.:: He screams as he leaps toward Sammi. His body rippling as it turns obsidian and he becomes razor sharp. 

Cara and Ryan jump back as they realize who Jamar resembles. They scream for the two to stop but it's too late Sammi's animal side has taken over. 

::Hey sis why don't we take this outside.:: They both disappear. 

**Chaos**


	24. Reality Bites-Part 24

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 24

**

Very early the next morning, when the sun was just rising, Amanda was woken up by an urgent telepathic message from Xavier. 

~Amanda, there is something wrong. I need you here NOW!!!~ 

Amanda groaned, then threw her covers off. She jumped out of bed and got dressed quickly. 

/That's the trouble with being the leader...everything is urgent, and you don't get to sleep in./ she thought, as she ran out the door. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Athena and Bobby where just walking in to check on Jamar, when they heard screaming coming from the medlab. As they entered, they saw the green lady awakening. Athena was stunned. 

Bobby leaned over and whispered, "I'm glad she didn't wake up while we were down here the other night. That could have been embarrassing!" 

Athena stifled a giggle. She walked over to the dazed woman. 

"Hi, I'm Athena and this is Bobby. Don't worry you're among friends, no one is going to hurt you. How do you feel?" she asked. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi and Jamar landed outside, again. Sammi knew when Jamar spoke that it wasn't Jamar, but Kyle. The only personality that ever tried to hurt her... hell, he tried to kill her about three times. 

"Kyle, long time no see. Miss me?" Sammi said tauntingly. 

"Only thing I've missed about you is the need to kill you." He answered and he dived at her. 

She side stepped and he landed on the ground. 

"A lot has changed. I'm not like I was before. You definitely got a fight coming, because guess what? I don't die easily." Sammi spat at him as he got up and faced her. 

"You won't kill me. I'm part of Jamar." He said defiantly. 

"I may not kill you, but I would put you out of commission for awhile." Sammi said as she waited for him to make another move. 

**jubilee_79**

Kyle smiled coldly, then answered, "Oh, but to stop me you're going to have to kill me. After I get through with you, I'm going after your friends." he looked around them. "This place doesn't exactly suit me, we're going somewhere else." he finished. 

Once more, a purple flame surrounded them both, and they disappeared. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

A purple orb of fire exploded on the ground on top of the cliff, revealing Jamar and Sammi. They were at each other's throats before the flame had even disappeared. They circled each other once, sizing each other up...then... 

"AAAAHRRGGHHH!!!" Sammi roared as she lunged for Jamar, tearing at him with her claws. 

Jamar smiled coldly and ducked away, then slashed at Sammi with his razor sharp hands. Sammi screamed in pain and anger as his hand met her shoulder, leaving a deep wound. Sammi's eyes sparkled with fire... 

She lunged again, aiming low. Sammi crashed into Jamar at mid thigh, picked him up and in one swift movement, she ran him into a tree. The tree snapped in half with the force that Sammi used. 

Jamar grabbed Sammi, and picked her up...he held her in the air above his head and began to walk over to the edge of the cliff. He was going to end it... 

"NO!!!" Cara screamed as she and Ryan reached the battleground. 

Cara dropped to the ground and placed her hands on the ground. Pink glowing fire shot out of her hands and ran across the ground until it reached the ground in front of Jamar. The ground exploded, sending Jamar and Sammi flying through the air, away from the face of the cliff. 

They hit the ground and rolled, both were on their feet and heading for each other again before they even stopped spinning. 

Cara had had enough...she had dealt with this stuff at home, she wasn't about to let it happen here. Brothers and Sisters should never fight. 

Before Ryan could stop her, Cara ran out to join the battle. She stood in between Sammi and Jamar, and looked them both in the eyes. Her red eyes glowed dangerously...she was angry... 

"To get to each other, you'll both have to go through me...and you really don't want to do that. 'Cause I'll Kill ya both." She said with utter seriousness. 

**Rainfall**

Sammi stood down but kept eyeing Kyle. She knew that Cara wouldn't stop him. No one could except for Jamar and for him to do that he would have to fight to gain control again. 

She watched as Cara turned her head away from Kyle. Cara started to say something, but was cut off as Sammi quickly paffed Kyle into unconsciousness. 

Ryan quickly knelt down and felt for a pulse. "He's still alive." She said looking at Sammi and Cara. 

Cara turned her face to Sammi and screamed,"Why did you do that? I told you to stop fighting." 

Sammi looked at her and said,"I did, but Cara, That,"She pointed at Jamar's body,"is not Jamar. It was Kyle, and he would've stopped at nothing to kill me, and that includes going through you." 

Ryan came over to them and said,"She's right. He was going to hurt you, I saw it. He was about to slash you in the back, but she stopped him." 

**jubilee_79**

Cara sighed and closed her eyes. She couldn't believe that she had done it again. She hated fights, always tried to stop them, but every time she did anything she just ended up making things worse. And inevitably ended up getting hurt in the process. 

Cara opened her eyes again...the fire was gone, she was tired. She turned to look at Sammi and Ryan. 

"You two get him back to the Mansion, I'm going for a walk... I need some time to think." she said, and walked away into the woods. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Xavier's Study~

_**

Zeklos appears before Amanda and Xavier, startling them outta their minds (no pun intended). 

"Zeklos. Is there something you wish to discuss?" asked Xavier. 

"Yes it appears that the one personality the rest of us tried to contain has been loosed from his prison." 

"I had thought that most of Jamar's personalities were harmless." stated Xavier. 

"They are, for the most part. In the beginning 'First One' had only three such personalities: Zekk, Loes, and then there's Kyle. Over the years Jamar developed somewhere near fifty personalities... of all fifty, Kyle is the only one that's homicidal. When the rest of us merged, the backwash of energy must have cracked his mental prison." Zeklos explained. 

"How is it that you exist externally from Jamar, Zeklos?" asked Amanda. 

"I am made up of Jamar's first main personalities, and 47 other such entities. In essence, we were created by Jamar conscience and instincts of self-preservation to look over him." 

"Where is he now?" Amanda begins scanning the grounds. 

"He's in the Detention Level. Forge and Beast are there setting up some safety measures. Well that's definitely a good idea. I'm not sure of exactly all the things he can do. He never practiced using his powers and Sammi was the only one who could control him, but it looks like now that's not even true." 

**Chaos**

**_

~Detention Level~

_**

Victor held Ryan close as she watched Beast and Forge try to contain Jamar. He could see it in her face how much it hurt her to see him like that. Victor didn't like it much either. People shouldn't be confined like animals, but Victor wasn't objecting to what was being done. If it kept Ryan a little safer, then it was fine with him. 

"I don't understand what happened. One minute Jamar and I are talking about our pasts and then Sammi comes in concerned about him. Then everyone got so angry. " Ryan placed her head on Victors chest and began to cry. 

"Shush now frail. It will be all right. You shouldn't worry so much." Victor said smoothing her hair trying to comfort her. 

"Ryan if perhaps you could do me a favor. Could you please see how our sleeping beauty is doing?" Hank asked Ryan because he seemed to be torn between he two patients. 

Ryan nodded; she understood what Hank was feeling. She turned and left the room. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan walked into the medlab to see Athena and Bobby talking to the girl. "How are you doing?' 

"I hurt bad, but not as bad as that guy Athena was telling me about. How is he doing?" 

"I hope he is going to be ok." Ryan said. 

**Le Fae**

**_

~Sometime Later~

_**

Sammi was in the medlab with Logan, Cara and Ryan. Logan was cleaning out her shoulder. 

"How did this happen?" He asked as he blotted the blood away. 

"Kyle tried to kill me." Sammi said. 

"Who?" He asked stopping to look at her. 

"Kyle. He's one of Jamar's personalities. He never liked me. When we were kids I used to be the only one who could control them... even Kyle. But now, I don't think I can." Sammi said looking at Logan. She could see the worry in his eyes. 

"How many are there?" He asked putting the bandage on. 

"When we were kids there were three. Zekk, Loes, and Kyle. Now, who knows. Zekk and Loes always helped me with Kyle. He tried it before. When we were kids he tried to kill me three times. I got away, but now as I was fighting him, I could feel that he wanted to kill me and nothing would stop him." She said with a few tears running down her face. "I don't know what to do, I can't kill him because that would kill Jamar and he knows that I wouldn't hurt Jamar." She continued. 

Logan hugged her and started to stroke her hair,"Its Ok, darlin'. I won't let him get the chance again. I promise." 

"No. If anyone tries to hurt Kyle It'll hurt Jamar. I just wish I knew why Kyle hated me so much." She said returning the hug. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon had been monitoring the events at the mansion with considerable amusement. Every chaotic thing that happened gave her more power...she herself was connected to the members of Vision-X...she fed off of their misery. 

/Soon, Kyle, you will get your chance...your Father has plans for you./ she thought to herself. A telepathic voice in her head startled her, and she didn't startle easily. 

~Knock it off, Anon...you're really beginning to sound like a broken record...~ uttered the voice of Kyle. 

Anon's silver eyes grew wide behind her mask...apparently she had misjudged Jamar, and the extent of his powers. He had heard her, and he knew of her existance. 

Anon's eyes narrowed...she wouldn't misjudge him again...she was now on her guard. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

Like some old gargoyle from darkness on the Mansion roof, it's gigantic wing spreading over its body. 

Jonas was looking at it all, if he was human why did he doubt himself, looking down at his body, he had once again change in to a semi-dragon state, almost 12 feet tall. 

It felt more natural in this state, he feared to fully change into a Dragon, as if he would never change back to a human. 

He had heard every word every of the night, he no longer needed sleep... he could go for a month with out it. 

Why had he not helped Sammi when she need it... 

He jumped off the roof and extended his wings. There was no sound... thousands of years of wisdom guided his movements. There was someone new in the house, someone had awakened... 

His muscles tightened as he made a jump and folded his wings on his back, he could not fly there would be a sound... he jumped more then 100 feet and settled himself on the wall, his claws carefully and soundlessly holding him there. 

He quickly found and opened window, and stepped inside. 

He could smell every one, but it was only Sammi that mattered to him, he could smell blood on her, mixed with that of Jamar, he knew why, and still he did nothing, he was a beast and not human... 

The corridors were small but he had no problem getting to the destination, masking his smell as much as he could... he opened the doors to medlab... 

He needed to know if they would accept him for what he was, even this hideous form... 

But the first person he locked eyes with was a girl that had been asleep... he narrowed his blue eyes, waiting for the rest to gaze upon his monstrous form... waiting to be judged. 

**Admiral**

Cara turned...she'd sensed Jonas, knew what he was feeling. 

/Great, I'm not telepathic, I'm empathic...how stupid is that? I can feel what others are feeling...but I can't respond. Word's always fail me./ she thought. 

She turned and began to walk over to Jonas. He eyed her with cold eyes. 

"I know what you're feeling Jonas...you WANT to be judged...you expect it. You want us to scream and run, or try to fight you...it would give you something that you could fight against. Something that you could change. I know what that feels like, even if you don't beleive me. I look completely normal to you, but I've never felt normal. My problem? Illness. I had a seizure in front of my friends at school when I was just a kid...they hated me after that...treated me like I was a monster. I felt like a monster...still do sometimes. Your appearance doesn't matter Jonas...it really is what's inside that counts. If you don't believe me, ask Sammi. She isn't blind, she loves you." Cara said, then turned and walked out of the room. The memories were too painful for her. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb's hangover subsided. She felt much better. But there was still the matter with Angelo to deal with. She didn't want to do it. She didn't want to deal with another 'talk', they were too stressful. She was more a visual girl. That gave her an idea. She went out to the shed and looked at what kind of paint was there. 

Teb carried her bag full of paints to the wall outside the grounds. She started to work on her mural. She hadn't painted in over a week, and the rush she got was incredible. 

As she painted, she thought about all the stress that has been building up on her the past few days. 

She has been transported by a fictitious (or so she thought) super villin, apparently injected with cells that make her prey to his evil deeds... She acquired stretchy skin and trained with comic book characters (one in particular) with a world full of people with similar history. Her new friend died, sending her into an emotional downward spiral. Then he came back to life in a non-human form. She fell in love with a man, only to ruin that by becoming drunk and falling asleep in the arms of another. 

Teb stopped painting and punched the wall next to her piece, drilling a hole in it with her spiked hand. She cursed loudly to the sky, letting out her frustrations. After a few minutes of screaming and yelling and stomping her feet, she calmed down and finally looked up at her piece. 

ANGELO it read, (though to the common eye it probably didn't say anything) surrounded by a heart on one side, and an angel on the other. 

Remy set a hand on her shoulder. Teb jumped and turned around, but calmed down when she recognized Remy as a good guy. 

"Des very nice." 

"Uh..thanks..." Teb said, "Where's Leilee?" 

"Where's Angelo?" Remy countered. 

"Good point." 

The two sat in silence for a moment and admired the painting. The shed had a wide selection of spray paints. I guess when you live in a mansion, spray paint is a necessity. 

"He will like it," Remy broke the silence, "but Gambit don't think the professor will like the idea of you painting all over his walls..." 

Teb smiled and nodded. Remy walked off back toward the mansion. He called to Teb as he walked back "Pleasure meeting you chere." 

Teb smiled again "Same here." she called to his retreating form. 

**teb**

**_

~Medlab~

_**

Jonas looked at Cara as she made her way down the hall... 

Did they all try to fool him, get him to feel better, or was he the fool... too blind, too ignorant to see that he was human... but he was so scared that he was not. 

Someone grabbed his arm and he reacted instinctively... part of him hoping that someone was about to fight him off, his clawed hand stopped an inch from Sammi's face... her look of confusion and sorrow filling her eyes as a single tear slid down her face. 

She had lost him once, and didn't want to lose him once again... 

Logan was ready to move, he still didn't trust this new Jonas, it was a new smell... nothing was the same. 

Jonas moved his hand away, he loved her, his heart cried out every time he was not holding her, and he would protect her... but how could she love him... he had to know. 

He grabbed Sammi quick in his hand and started down the hall... people were screaming at him to stop, but he jumped out the nearest window and was in the air before he was fully out of the building. 

Sammi was yelling something but he needed to get away... quick, somewhere they could be alone. Somewhere no one would look, somewhere he could find out if she still loved him. 

**Admiral**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Cara went outside. She saw Remy and Teb looking at something. Remy walked away, and Cara went over to see what Teb was doing. 

Cara saw the painting...she smiled, and her eyes lit up. 

"Be back in a sec Teb!" she said to the surprised girl. 

Cara ran back into the mansion...she knew she'd seen Angelo moping around there somewhere. She found him in the rec room playing a video game. 

"Take that Jono, and That!!!" he said as punched the bad guy on the screen. He was totally pissed. 

Cara grinned. She ran over to Ange, took the control out of his hands and tossed it on the couch. 

"Sorry skins, but you're comin' with me!" she said, as she grabbed him around the wrist and proceeded to drag him out of the rec room. 

"What are you doing, Chica? Have you gone totally nuts?" Ange said, as Cara dragged him out of the mansion. 

Cara dragged him over where Teb was standing with a rather shocked expression on her face. Ange looked at Teb, his eyes narrowed. He was upset with her. 

Cara turned and faced him. 

"Look, skin...Teb is not cheating on you...she loves you. You don't believe me? Look at that!" she said, as she twisted him around so he could see the mural. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Medlab~

_**

When Sammi had seen Jonas enter the medlab, she had to admit to herself that the new body did scare her a little. But she knew that she would get used to it. Because inside it was still Jonas. The man, the soul, and the heart that she fell in love with. That she thought she would die without. 

When she first woke up from her dream about Harmony, she almost died. Then when she ran the DNA test on her and Logan and found out that he was her father, she prayed that what Harmony told her was right. And then when she saw Jonas on the cliff, she knew that no matter what, he was back... and that they would be together forever. 

Now, after she heard what Cara said to him, she knew what was bothering him. He didn't think anyone could accept him as he is now. He didn't believe that he could be loved like that, and she knew that she had to set him straight. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

They ended up in the woods, in a small, familiar clearing. Jonas stopped flying, landing next to their tree stump, and set Sammi down. 

She turned to look at him and said, "No matter how you try, I'm never going to look at you with anything but love. I know what you are trying to do, and It's never going to work with me. I know you know what happened with Jamar, and I'm glad that you didn't try to help me. See, Kyle, one of Jamar's personalities, has always hated me and I know that if you were there he would have gone after you. I just got you back, I don't want to lose you again." 

He looked at her. Her words went to his heart, but they were just words. How could she possibly love something as hideous as he had become? 

"How can you love me like this?" He asked not even realizing that he did until she spoke. 

"Because you're my Soul Mate. We are meant to be together. I love you for who you are, not what you look like. I'll admit it. It's a little scarey looking, but I know that inside that you are the same Jonas as before. The man, the soul, the heart, that I fell in love with. The one that I thought I was going to die without. Don't you realize what you are doing but pushing me away like this?" She asked starting to cry. 

"You're hurting me. It kills me every time you look at me and all I see in your eyes is disgust of what you have become. You see that?" She pointed at the carving in the tree."I never wrote that. My Guardian did. She came to me on the day of your memorial and told me that you would be back. That the Goddess of Love, Aphrodite, is making sure that you come back to me. She told me that like you are bonded to the dragons, I'm bonded with the Gods." She had fallen on her knees crying as she got the last words out. 

Jonas was looking down at his feet, but when she mentioned the dragons and how he was bonded to them, he picked his head up and looked at her. As he did he remembered. 'A Goddess came to me and begged for your life.' Sammi was the reason that he was brought back. He changed back into his human form and knelt down next to her. 

"How did you know?"He asked as he slowly put his arm around her. 

"My guardian told me. She wrote that." She looked at the tree again and he looked too. "We're bonded no matter what. We're meant to be together." She looked at him and said," I love you and I always will." She reached her hand up and touched his cheek, and looked into his eyes."No matter what." 

"No matter what." He said looking into her eyes and seeing the love that she has for him."I love you, too." 

When the last word was out of his mouth, she leaned in and kissed him. He deepened the kiss as she put her arms around him, and he put his around her. They broke apart and looked into each other's eyes. 

They stayed like that for a few moments and then she said,"I have alot to tell you. We're about the only ones here that can control our hormones. And I don't think you'll be doing the 'Dragon Chicken Dance' any time soon." She was cut off by him kissing her again. 

When he broke it he said, "No speaking." 

She looked at him and said,"Just one more thing, Does this make you an honorary Summers?" She smiled. 

He smiled and kissed her again and said,"I've missed you so much." 

"Me, too." She said as she kissed him back. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~The Detention Level~

_**

The field crackled as another burst of energy poured across it. Forge and Beast studied the readings they were getting from the DNA analyzers. As they watched the holographic display, the computer began listing it's findings. 

------------------------------------------------- 

_SUBJECT:_ ALEXANDER, JAMAR  
_CODENAME:_ CHAOS  
OMEGA CLASS MUTANT  
_MUTANT ABILITIES:_  
TELEPATHY  
TELEKINESIS  
PYROKINESIS  
SUBARCTIC MANIPULATION  
TELEPORTATION  
AURA READING  
SYNCRONIC/ABSORPTION ABILITY  
SUPER DENSE/RAZOR SHARP EPIDERMAL MANIPULATION  
SUBJECT SUFFERS FROM MULTIPLE PERSONALITIES  
INTANGIBILITY  
_KNOWN PERSONALITIES: _  
ZEKK THOMAS  
DONNAVON SHARP  
DAVIE STANTON  
LOES BARLOW  
KYLE DAEMON  
CARL SANTOS  
_NUMBER OF PERSONALITIES UNKNOWN  
*[NEW ENTRY]--_PERSONALITIES MERGED INTO NEW BEING  
ZEKLOS-PSIONIC BEING 

REMAINING PERSONALITY--  
KYLE DAEMON--POSSESSES ALL ABILITIES OF CORE PERSONALITY--EMPLATE CLASS THREAT 

------------------------------------------------

"Whew!" Forge whistles as the computer finishes compiling. 

"What did Sinister do to the young man?" 

"Apparently he made Mr. Alexander a genetic time bomb." 

"So anybody wanna light the fuse? Heh Heh Heh Heh!" Kyle says filling the room with maniacal laughter. "Oh by the way why did my sister and her little dragon boy leave?" 

"What do you mean Kyle? They haven't left the mansion." asked Beast. 

"Oh come on... just because you have me psi-blind in here doesn't mean I don't know what's going on. I'm really gonna have some fun when I get outta here. I hate to quote Creed, but I'm gonna gut the runt before I slice and dice sister dear." He says, emphasizing his last words by morphing his hands into 4 foot long blades. 

"I might even check in on Cara. It seems my weakling brother Jamar has a thing for her, heh heh heh heh. That's just too bad, ain't it." 

His face changes to one of horror as Jamar's consciousness bubbles up to the top and is again forced down. 

**Chaos**

**_

~Outside~

_**

Angelo stared wide-eyed at the Mural. 

"You really did this for me, Chica?" he asked Teb. He smiled at the girl. 

Cara smiled at the two of them, and quietly slipped away. They could handle it from here. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Cara went around the corner of mansion, and started to go in. She wanted to check on Jamar. 

A wave of intense emotion rippled through the air, and crashed down on Cara. Cara swayed and clutched her head, almost collapsing under the pressure. She braced herself against the doorway. The pain was gone almost as soon as she had felt it, but it left a lasting impression. 

/Jamar.../ she thought. 

In that one instant where Kyle had lost control, Jamar had sprung to the surface, just long enough to send Cara a warning. Cara could feel his fear and frustration...and something else...something unfamiliar to her. It took a second to register...when she realized what it was, her eyes grew wide with shock. 

/Jamar CARES about ME??? Whoa.../ she thought, as she blushed beet red. A silly grin plastered itself on her face, and she got a little starry-eyed. 

/He'd really go for an 18 year old, bubbly, bratty, matchmaking, scheming, reddish-brown haired, red eyed, 5'6" 120 lbs. girl who blows things up, duplicates herself, and has a male alternate personality duplicate named Arac who tries to kill people? Cool!/ she thinks, as she gets even more starry-eyed and gets an even sillier grin on her face. 

/Wait a minute...what am I doing?! Get control of yourself, girl!/ Cara thought, as she shook her head and her face dropped into a frown. /This isn't the time to think romantic thoughts...Kyle is in control of Jamar right now, and Jamar is in pain. Jamar warned me about Kyle's intentions towards me...I should be spending time trying to help Jamar, not thinking about romance./ 

Cara sighed, and rubbed her head. This empathic thing was going to take some getting used to. 

/Jamar, I hope you can hear me...we'll get through this...together./ she thought, and she went in the mansion. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Detention Level~

_**

Leilee walked into the room. "Hello Forge, Beast." 

Kyle leered at her from the cage. "Hey, cutie." 

Leilee turned and looked at the two X-men. "Can I talk to him alone?" 

Beast nodded and they left the room, not quite closing the door all the way, so they could moniter the situation. 

Leilee walked over towards the cage. "And you must be Kyle. Right?" 

"You got it. Did Sammi send you?" 

"No. I'm here on my own agenda, ok, Pookie?" 

Kyle growled softly and threw himself at the cage. "Bitch." 

"Yeah, yeah. I know. It's a gift. Now. I'm going to ask you a question. You answer, or you're punished. Simple concept. Why do you hate Sammi?" 

"Why do you care?" 

"Sammi's my friend. Now answer, or I let Jamar take over." 

Kyle's eyes widened. "You wouldn't." 

Leilee walked over until she was nose to nose with him. "Oh wouldn't I? Answer." 

Kyle spat and looked at her. "Fine. She reminds me of my mother." 

Leilee looked at him, no expression on her face. "You hate your mother?" 

"Yes." 

"Why?" 

Kyle looked at her, the hard look cracking slightly, allowing the scared little boy to shine through. "My mom was so nice. She used to say she loved me. She would hug me. Fix me when I was hurt. That's when she was nice." 

Leilee pulled a chair closer and sat down, listening. "What happened when she wasn't nice?" 

His eyes closed as he looked away. "She'd hit me. Wouldn't let me eat. She used to lock me in the bathroom for a couple hours with a bucket of bleach and ammonia. Make me lie in the bathtub filled with ice cold or scalding hot water. Cut me." 

"And you're afraid Sammi will do that, too?" 

"Not exactly. I'm afraid she'll be mean too." 

"What your mom did. Did that make you feel bad, Kyle?" 

"...yes." 

"Did she say why she did it?" 

"Because I was bad." 

"Were you bad?" 

"I don't know." 

"Do you remember being bad when she did that?" 

"No." 

Leilee slipped into the cage. "Kyle. It's not your fault. Your mom was wrong. She never should have done that. Just because she did it doesn't mean Sammi will. Or me. Or Cara. Or anyone else here. You're safe here. We're not going to do that to you. We want you to be safe. And happy. We're keeping you safe, and we'll protect you. That's all we can do. Sammi's not her. She's not going to hurt you. Let it go, Kyle." 

Kyle eyes hardened suddenly. "What make's you so smart, bitch?" 

Leilee smiled. "Life. My mom's a psychologist, but I understand how you feel. It's hard, but you have to move on. I have something for you to read. It's about a boy who had a similar experience when he was young. It's called 'A Child called It'. Read it. I think it will help you a bit." With that she stood up. "I have to go. I'll visit you in a little bit. Read the book and think about what I said." 

And with that, she left. 

**Leilee**

**_

~Outside, Teb and Angelo~

_**

Teb sighed "Yeah, shi*. I'm really sorry Ange. I was stupid." 

Angelo opened up his arms, and teb welcomed the embrace. She started to cry. Angelo rubbed her back to calm her. 

"What's wrong?" he asked. 

Teb felt like a fool. 

"Nothing, everything, I don't know." she faltered. 

"It's ok. let it out." Angelo said, gently. 

"We gotta face Sinister tomorrow..." Teb said, starting to calm down. 

Ange nodded and held her closer. They just sort of stayed that way for awhile. 

**teb**


	25. Reality Bites-Part 25

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 25

**

Teb and Ange hugged for awhile. Teb pulled back a little, then flinched. 

"Oh sh*t Ange." she said, and looked at her hands. She'd gotten paint all over Angelo. "Ohhh... I'm sorry Ange." 

Ange looked down at his shirt and rather calmly said, "There's only one thing to do about this, chica..." 

"What?" Teb asked, as she saw Angelo pick up a can of spray paint. 

"Oh..nonononono." she said as Ange shook the spray paint. 

"What are ya doing with that thing, Ange?" she asked, as Ange test sprayed to the side. 

Teb grabbed a can too, and said, "I fight fire with fire, Ange." 

"Then you better light your match, Teb..." Angelo said and gave a devilishly charming smile as he sprayed paint all over teb. 

She pressed the cap on her can and sprayed him too. They each grabbed another can and started running around the grounds painting each other. 

Teb smiled at Ange as they circled each other, each had a fresh can of paint. She took off the pink cap of the paint she threatened Angelo with. 

"Gonna paint me pink, chica?" Angelo asked. 

Teb just smiled evilly. 

"East coast girls don't play fair." he said and they went at each other again. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

The two sloppy multicolored teens slooped into the house. Cara looked at them, and almost burst out laughing. 

"What happened to you?" she asked, trying to stifle the grin pulling at the corners of her mouth. 

"This," Angelo said, indicating the paint, "is what happens during a paint fight." 

"Yeah," said Teb, "but the fumes were getting to us." 

The two walked upstairs holding hands, leaving multicolored footprints. 

**teb**

Cara grinned as she watched Teb and Ange go upstairs hand in hand...what a cute couple they made. She looked at the footprints on the floor...and decided to skedaddle before Cyke or Storm came along and asked her to clean it up. She ran down the hall and disappeared around the corner. 

**_

~That Evening~

_**

Cara was looking for Hank, she wanted to get a progress report from him about Jamar. Suddenly a cold chill ran through the air, and the hair on the back of Cara's neck stood up on end. A telepathic voice sounded in her head. 

~Ah, little one...don't think that I've forgotten you, or your challenge. I will be waiting for you tomorrow, when you and your friends come.~ 

/You know what we are planning, Anon?/ Cara asked. She knew that silvery voice well. 

~Yes, little one...I know of Sammi's vaccine, and the plans of your team.~ 

/Why hasn't Sinister ordered our deaths then?/ Cara thought. 

~You are not dead, simply because I have not told Father about your plans.~ 

/Why have you not told him, Anon?/ Cara asked, a shiver running down her spine. 

~The longer each of you live, the stronger I become...especially when you are in pain.~ the sound of Anon's evil laughter echoes in Cara's head. 

~I'm allowing Sammi to create the vaccine because it will make it more of a challenge to kill you...I love a good challenge. I will gain a great deal of satisfaction and power when I kill you, and your friends...and it will be a slow death. Remember, Cara, I will be waiting.~ 

**Rainfall**

**Oooohhhh... I think ya scared her just a little, Anon. Look, she's shakin'. Can't you do better than that you second rate witch?** 

**This is not your concern at the moment, Kyle. Father and I will deal with you in good time.** 

**Heh Heh Heh! Oh come now... you're not even sure about that, are you, _little one_? Remember this well. I WILL DEAL WITH VISION-X AND ::CARA IS MINE:: TO DEAL WITH AS I SEE FIT.** A psionic backlash hits Anon, bloodying her nose beneath her mask. 

/AAAAIIIIEEEE!!! I definitely must watch out for this one. He's a formidable opponent./ 

Cara listens to the exchange between Kyle and Anon. Her empathic senses flared as Jamar poked through the veil to deliver her a quick telepathic message. 

**Get Zek...los and Xavvvvvvier quick!** Cara starts running in search of Xavier. If she could find him, Zeklos wouldn't be far behind. 

**Chaos**

**_

~Sammi and Jonas' Room~

_**

Jonas and Sammi both snuggled close under the covers, both sleeping, both dreaming. It didn't matter that tomorrow they would most likely go up against Sinister, one of marvels most dangerous villains... they were lost in each others arms, had found each other, even across death... nothing was going to keep them apart... NOTHING! 

But from the door looked another figure. He could smell what had happen... now his daughter was in bed with someone that claimed to be someone that is dead, and what ever it was had used her love for Jonas to get her to this. 

For a moment Logan considered killing him in bed right now, no matter what or who he was... one thing he was sure of was that soon he would be dead. 

In his anger he could not see the other peeping tom, Rouge... she was outside the window looking at the two snuggling persons. Her heart cried, she was so glad for them both... and for herself. 

When Jonas died, she fled the mansion and had stayed away until he came back, and still she didn't talk to him. She would find the perfect moment to welcome him back, she would wish them both the best of luck in life... 

Rouge pressed her hand to the window and a tear ran down her face; it felt like a son she most likely never would have, had first died... and now returned. 

"Cute is it not... love I mean." A voice said to her side. Rogue jerked to her side to see a dragon hover in mid air. 

"WHO THE..." she started but was cut off quickly. 

"Fear not, and ruin not this moment with words. Gaze upon your *son*, see that he has found love in the arms of someone who loves him more then life itself." 

"I am Azmaru, Guardian of Amanda... you have a strong will and a wounded soul, may we meet again fair lady, but watch over them tonight, and sway the animal back on it's path." 

Azmaru disappeared, leaving her alone again to gaze on the two sleeping beauties... she smiled, 

/My son.../ she thought. 

**Admiral**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Charles and Amanda were in the kitchen, discussing the days events. While Charles was talking, Amanda was monitoring the events upstairs. She was happy for Jonas and Sammi. They deserved to be happy. That, and she had some ammunition against any teasing from Jonas. She was concerned about Logan. His protective attitude was a little too dangerous for his own good. She would have to have a talk with him. Preferably in the Danger room. 

(I would prefer you not to injure any of my people. We're running out of room in the med-lab) 

(You never let me have any fun.) Amanda teased. 

(I have nothing against having fun. In fact I was thinking of having a little myself.) Charles returned. 

Amanda blushed slightly and replied (Why, Charles, I do believe I may have corrupted you a little. I think Sammi may be right about people being unable to control hormones. Is that a problem here?) 

Charles laughed. (No. It isn't.) 

Both looked into each others eyes knowing that their time was running out. They had known each other such a short time, but it felt as if they had known each other for ages. 

/Maybe Sammi was right on with the soul mate concept,/ Amanda thought. 

Amanda got up from her chair. Charles signaled his chair to follow her. He didn't say a word until they were outside. His curiosity was getting the better of him. 

(Where are we going?) He asked. 

(The mansion is so crowded with so many different conflicting thoughts. I just wanted to get away. I thought I might spend the night watching the stars. Care to join me?) she stated with a twinkle in her eyes. 

Charles remember the last time they watched the stars and smiled. 

(I would love to.) He replied. 

**A.C.**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Cara ran as fast as she could through the long corridors of the mansion. 

/Why does this place always seem to get bigger and bigger when something is URGENT!?/ she thought with breathless annoyance. 

She rounded a corner, and almost catapulted into Beast. 

"Hey, Hank! I can't stop now... got something to do... I want to talk to you later though!" she shouted over her shoulder as she continued running. 

Finally, Cara saw the door of Xavier's study. She burst in... 

"AACK!!! No one's here!!!" she said, and took off running again. 

/I know, they're probably outside...only one way to find out!!!/ she thought as she made her way to the door. 

She ran outside, and soon spotted Amanda and Xavier talking. She ran up to them. 

"help!anonknowswhatwereplanningkylehurtherjamarsentmeyouhavetocomenowwhereszeklos!!!" she said in a very rushed voice. 

Amanda and Xavier both stared wide eyed at her... they hadn't understood a word she said. 

"Calm down, Cara... take a deep breath, and start over from the beginning. Slower this time. What is wrong?" Xavier said. 

Cara took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. 

"Anon knows what we're planning... Kyle hurt her... Jamar broke through long enough to send me a message... you and Zeklos have to come, NOW!!!" Cara said in an urgent voice. 

Zeklos stepped out of the shadows. 

"It is true, Xavier...'First One' has called us both...we must go." 

Charles sighed and looked at Amanda...he may need her help, but after the last time she tried to help Jamar... he didn't know if he could ask that of her. What if... 

His musings were interrupted by the sudden movement of Amanda resting her hand on his shoulder. 

/It is alright, Charles...I can do this...I will be fine. We must go now./ she responded. 

"GREAT!!! It's settled then...we're going! Come on you GUYS!!! Hurry up!!!" Cara said as she rushed back towards the mansion. 

"How did Cara know what we were thinking?" asked a shocked Amanda. 

"I didn't!!!" shouted the retreating Cara, "I'm empathic...I knew what you were feeling! Let's go already!!!" 

"Perhaps Cara should be elsewhere while we deal with Kyle, Professor...'First One' would not like for her to be hurt." suggested Zeklos. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

"Are you sure about this?" asked Charles. 

"I'll be fine. He caught me unprepared the last time. Besides, I'll have you with me." Amanda assured him. 

In his mind he heard, (Don't start getting unprofessional with me.) 

(Can't help it. I love you.) 

Amanda smiled at the simple statement. She then used her powers to inform the rest of the telepaths and empaths to stay away from the mansion. She was afraid of what would happen if Jamar let off a psychic backlash again. She also wanted to keep Anon away from the rest of the team. 

(Charles, maybe we should use this opportunity to draw Anon out onto the psychic plane. See what she's got.) 

(I am not going to let you fight a one on one battle with her.) 

(You got to stop reading my mind. Besides you'll be there if I need help. We got to see what she can do. I'll have my dragon guilds to help. You know I'm right.) 

(All right. Talk to Cara first. try to get some information first.) 

They had just joined the rest of the team when Amanda decided to do something that would make Charles relax. It would take his mind off of the danger for a second or two. She waited till they were surrounded by the X-men, when she bent down and deliver a passionate kiss on there stunned leader. She didn't stop until he responded fully. Then she grab Cara's arm and led her away. 

She turned around and over her shoulder shouted, "Relax, Charles. I'll be fine and we'll finish that discussion later. It was most stimulating." 

Cara gasped and whispered in her ear, "I can't believe you just did that." 

"I needed to get his mind and everyone else's off what we were about to do. Anon can read minds, remember? We need to stop projecting our thoughts. I want you to tell me everything about her and about this little challenge you made." 

**A.C.**

Cara took a deep breath. 

"Right before Jonas came back, I was on the cliff, and I contacted Anon. I told her that I was coming for her...she accepted my challenge. I know it was a stupid thing to do...I know that I'm totally in over my head. Anon is holding me to it though." Cara said. 

Amanda nodded, and said, "I see, please continue." 

"Now, this is what I have learned from my conversation with Anon." Cara continued, "She is a very powerful telepath who can turn people into stone," Cara shivers as she rubs her right arm, then continues, "... is homicidal, psychopathic, and intelligent. She is connected to us...feeds off of us...off of our misery and pain. It makes her stronger. She knows what we are planning, and knows about the vaccine Sammi is making...and she hasn't told Sinister anything about it. Anon likes a challenge...I could feel it. She's only allowing us to continue, so she can have the pleasure of killing us first hand. 

"One more thing, Kyle knows Anon, and he hurt her telepathically. He's planning on destroying all of us. We need to stop him, Amanda...before Jamar...is...lost!" Cara said with a shaky voice. She could feel that Jamar was losing the battle. Something had to be done, and it had to be done NOW! 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Ryan and Sabretooth's Room~

_**

Sabretooth watched as Ryan's chest rose and fell with each breath. She looked so peaceful sleeping. 

/How is it this frail gets under my skin so much,/ he thought to himself. 

He pushed a stray piece of hair out of her face and caressed her cheek. Victor was so mad with her earlier but when he looked at her sleeping form all that anger melted away. Victor realized how much in love with her he was. He thought for a moment about asking her not to leave, but to stay with him instead. Victor knew he couldn't do that though, what if she said no? 

He didn't think he could take the thought of her not wanting to be with him. Still he also realized that she needed to go back to her own world. He didn't want her to live in this world and deal with all the anti-mutant hate he has had to put up with. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Ryan dreamed of fields and children laughing. The entire scene looked like something from the sixties. People with flowers in their hair and long flowing dresses that danced in the wind. She smiled at the scene. It was so peaceful and so carefree, the kind of life she wanted. The scene was broken though... everyone turned and looked at her with terrified expressions. Suddenly, everyone was screaming and running. 

She didn't understand why. Ryan looked down at her body, and she was the same as she was before. Nothing about her appearance would terrify anyone. Granted, some people freaked out about her tattoos and piercing's, but nothing to make people this afraid. Suddenly, a little boy came up to her, completely unafraid. 

"Why is everyone scared and running away?" She asked the child. 

"Because of this." He said and pointed to her heart. "You have an evil heart. Doomed to cause death and harm to everyone you are close to. Look at what you've done so far." 

Standing before Ryan, were the people she had once cared for. Her cousin who had hung himself, who she had found dead. One friend who drowned in the ocean because she couldn't fight the waves. Athena who had nearly died because of her heart problems. Jonas who had died and she nearly killed a few times. The field seemed to be filled with people who Ryan had met in her short lifetime. All eyes rested on her, some of them cold and dead... others alive, but no less cold. 

"Everyone you know has been hurt in some way.. most not harmed by anything you've done, but only by the curse you carry." As the boy spoke he morphed into Sabretooth. "I'm here to make sure you don't harm anyone else." With that said, he slashed at Ryan cutting her stomach open spilling her guts. 

Ryan awoke with a scream. 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

"I don't understand why you torment them so." Sinister said looking towards Anon. 

"I feed off of it.. it will make her weaker in battle. She is weak to us, you should let me kill her." Anon replied. 

"You shall get your chance. She will pay for what she has done." 

**Le Fae**

**_

~X-Mansion~

_**

Athena and Bobby had been resting in their room. They wanted to spend all the time they could together. Athena was afraid that every minute might be their last together. She was still very perplexed by everything that was happening. Everyone else had something to contribute to the team. They were all here for a reason. They all seemed to have some important information or power or entity needed to combat Sinister and his minions. She had none of those things. 

She still couldn't help but feel Sinister had just made a mistake by bringing her here. He must have intended to bring someone else. What importance could Athena possibly have? She started to cry. She realized there was no way for her to give her friends... her family, the help they needed. For the first time since the night of the costume party, she wished she had died. 

**snowbaby**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi heard Amanda's voice in her head. She needed to get out of the mansion. Even though her telepathic abilities weren't that advanced, she was still in danger. She didn't want to leave. She was comfortable... and she also knew that if she did, she would have to face her dad. She knew Logan was outside the door, waiting. So she did the next best thing. 

She telepathically woke Jonas up and covered his mouth before he could say anything. She pointed to her head and told him about what Amanda was going to do and her warning. She also told him about Logan being outside the door. She pointed to the window and he nodded. 

They got dressed and she quietly opened the window. And Jonas came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist and he flew them out the window and down to the lake. 

When She knew they were far enough away, she said,"I'm too happy right now to deal with my father. I know his is pissed, maybe we should have Rogue with us when we see him." 

"That's a good idea." He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. They sat down on the dock in each other's arms and looked at the stars. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb stepped out of the shower and put on some clothes. She walked into the bedroom and lay down on the bed next to Angelo. He put her arm around her and went back to watching tv. 

"Hey, Ange.." 

"Hmmm?" 

Teb sat up a little bit to look at Ange in the face. 

"Can I tell you something? It's a secret." 

Ange smiled at the childish look she had, with nothing but a pair of boxers and one of his oversized teeshirts on. 

"Si, chica." 

Teb put her head back onto Anges chest. She could hear his heart beat. 

"I'm scared of Sinister." 

"Come here." Ange said, and sat up. 

Teb sat up too til they were both on their knees, facing each other. Ange looked into Teb's blue eyes. Teb played with Ange's hair, rubbed the slightly rough skin of his cheek, and looked into his eyes. 

"Ange.." Teb said, but was stopped by Ange's mouth on hers. 

Teb kissed back, and put her arms around Ange and pulled him closer. 

_~~knock knock~~_

Teb and Angelo stopped, and looked at the door. 

_~~knock knock~~_

"Hold that thought, chica." Ange said, holding up a finger, and he went to answer the door. 

Jubilee, Ev, Paige, Monet, and Jono barged in. 

"Hey, do you guys got cable on the tv in here?" Jubilee asked, finding the remote and flipping through the channels. 

"Stormy won't let us use the main tv, til she finds out who left paint tracks." Ev explained, and sat at the edge of the bed with Jubilee. 

Ange looked shocked at first, but then a little disappointed. "Oh..." 

Jono and Paige took to the couch. 

"We ain't interrupting anything, are we?" Paige asked, and looked at Teb's ruffled shirt and Ange's LACK of clothing. 

"I believe they were going to have sex..." Monet said and glared at Teb, who had no problem with glaring back. 

Everyone looked at Teb and Angelo. Teb blushed bright red. Ange flashed Monet a 'I can't believe you just said that out loud' look. 

"Um..we were just...ummmm..." Teb started. 

"Who cares..." Jubilee interrupted. "They ain't anymore, not when they got the only available tv in their room." she said firmly. 

Everyone finally turned their attention to the tv. Ange gave Teb an 'I'm sorry' look and sat down next to her, and watched music videos with the rest of GenX. 

**teb**

**_

~Astral Plane~

_**

**You just couldn't keep quiet could you? You had to go yellin' to your smartass-touchy-feely-empathic girlfriend. Yeah, me and her are gonna have loads of fun.** Kyle's astral form licks his lips in a seductively feral way. 

**Don't even think about it!!!** 

**OOPS already did... wanna see?** Kyle projects the images of his perverted subconsciousness into Jamar. 

**You sick twisted bastard!** Jamar screams. Sharp black crystal blades pop out of Jamar. His hands and arms elongate as he claws at Kyle. The slashing and crackling of purple fire erupts as he teleports and claws at Kyle. 

Anon sits back watching the chaos and feeding off of the bad vibrations flowing on the astral plane. 

**Chaos**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

It's alright Cara," Amanda soothed, "You won't lose Jamar... I will make sure of that. Now, you must go away from the mansion, what is about to happen may hurt you if you don't...I know you are worried, but you must go." 

Cara nodded, and sighed shakily. She knew it was best for her to leave. She began to walk away in the direction of the forest. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Just as Cara reached the first tree of the forest, she cried out and staggered, falling against the tree in pain. She clutched her head with both hands. 

When the pain receded, Cara looked up, her face white as chalk. 

/Kyle, you disgusting, perverted sicko! How dare you invade my mind like that!/ the dark twisted images Kyle had sent left her shaking...she felt sick. 

Her tear-filled eyes suddenly hardened, and grew cold with anger. 

/Kyle, if ya weren't a part of my boyfriend, I'd come in there right now and kill ya.../ she thought. 

~Why don't you try, anyway? I know you want to...you really hate me don't you? So, come for me...Come to me Cara, I'm waiting for you.~ Kyle spoke in her head. He also knew Anon's art of subliminal messages. 

Cara's eyes grew blank, and trance-like, she began to walk back toward the mansion. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Rogue looks on as Jonas and Sammi settle down and look at the stars, she fly closer and for a moment considering to speak to them, but decides against it... when... 

"Rogue? Are you going to fly away, or are you coming down... please." Jonas said not looking in her direction. 

"I don't want ta intrude..." she said and landed a bit away, slowly she walked over to sit beside them. 

"Logan is going to kill ya both, ya know that, don't ya?" Rogue said with a warm smile. Both Jonas and Sammi blushed slightly. 

"Ah am happy for ya both..." Rogue wanted to say more, but her voice failed her... and she feared that she would start to cry if she didn't stop. 

Jonas surprisingly wrapped one arm around her shoulder. "Thanks Rogue." 

"When ya... died, I felt like I lost a son. I don't understand how, but ya both have gone right to ma heart." Rogue smiled and hugged them both. 

"I hope ya two get everything ya ever want, and don't worry about Logan I'll make sure he behaves." Rogue stood up. 

"I'll leave you two alone." but as she started to walk away, Jonas grabbed her arm. 

"Rogue, please don't go yet... everyone here has someone they bonded to... I am not the kind of person that does that easily, and now I fear rejection for this form I have become." 

He let go of her arm, and before she could react, Jonas gave her a big hug. 

"Please... I need to know that you can handle what I have become, because I'm not sure I can yet." 

**Admiral**

Suddenly, Sammi heard Cara cry out in pain. 

"Cara!" She said as she got up and started running towards the forest. 

Jonas and Rogue were right behind her. They saw Cara walking back towards the mansion. 

"Cara, No!!" They yelled as the took off after her. 

Sammi got to her first and tackled her. She snapped out of her daze and looked at Sammi and said,"Thanks." 

"For what?" Sammi asked confused. 

"Kyle was taunting me, and I didn't think before I thought and I challenged him. Somehow he was making me go back to the mansion. You stopped me and broke the link." Cara said giving Sammi a hug. 

Sammi hugged her back and said,"Anytime, sis." 

Cara pulled back and asked,"What do you mean by sis?" 

Sammi looked down and said, "Well, you're projecting a lot about Jamar. And I know he feels the same, so in a way we're sisters. So, Sis, want to help me defend Jonas from my father? Cause he's coming." She pointed to the back door and they could see the silhouette of Wolverine coming, and it didn't look happy. 

Cara looked at Sammi and asked,"What did you do?" 

"Let's just put it this way... if we were Jean and Scott there would be a direct mindbond, ya know what I mean?" Sammi said looking at Jonas who just kept smiling. 

Rogue smiled at the two of them...her green eyes sparkling with love and happiness for them. 

**jubilee_79**

Cara was smiling at them as well...just then, she felt it...anger, hate and cold determination of considerable quantities, pouring out of one man...he was coming closer. 

/Wolverine.../ she thought. 

Cara turned and stared in the direction of the mansion; she saw Wolverine advance...the anger pouring off him was overwhelming. He really meant to hurt Jonas; she couldn't let him do that... she loved Jonas like a brother. She had to stay and try to convince Wolverine that this was really Jonas... But Cara was torn; For on the Astral Plane, she could feel Jamar calling to her... he was weakening. Cara had to go help him. Suddenly, she had an idea. 

Cara quickly punched her fist into the palm of her other hand...two Caras suddenly appeared. Before Sammi, Jonas or Rogue could do anything, one of the Caras ran off back to the mansion. Rogue was about to follow and bring her back. 

"Let her go, Rogue...I have a plan that should help Jamar...I've got to at least try. If I lose him, it will kill me." Cara said softly. 

Rogue looked into her eyes...and set down upon the ground once again. She knew that look, knew what it meant. That was how she had felt when she lost Jonas. Rogue looked in Wolverine's direction...she knew how angry he was...he was going to try to kill her "Son"...she wasn't about to let that happen. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

The other Cara quickly made her way to the detention level where Jamar/Kyle was being held...as she entered, she saw Amanda and Xavier in front of the cell; Cara couldn't sense anything from them, so she knew they were probably on the Astral Plane fighting against Kyle. 

/Oh, I really hope this works.../ Cara thought as she started to concentrate her empathic powers... She just hoped her theory about her powers was correct. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Astral Plane~

_**

**Amanda...AManda...AMAnda...Hey what's wrong... yer not scared of little ole me are ya? Oh, by the way, where's yer bald-headed boyfriend?** 

Kyle floats there, chuckling as Jamar pants; his psychic form wavering as he tries to gather strength. 

/Where's Xavier? I don't think I can handle him./ Jamar asks, wearily. 

**Don't give up son, I am here.** 

**Ah, Professor... how nice of you to join us.** A psi-bolt shoots past Xavier, barely missing him. **If you and Mandy are here, where's that second rate psi at? Zeklos, I know you're here... show yourself.** 

**Sure thing Kyle.** Psionic arrows begin flying at Kyle but are stopped cold by the TK shield erected around him.**Nice try loser. Who's next?** 

Pain begins ripping through Kyle's subconsciousness as black tendrals of emotion crash in on his mind. 

**Unhh!! Looky Looky Jamar. It looks like your girlfriend will be joining us anyway.** 

Cara continues to pour it on. /I hope I can keep this up. I'm relatively new to using this power./ 

**We shall aide you my dear.** The dragons echo within the void as Amanda, Xavier, Zeklos, and Jamar link their minds and power to Cara. 

**Chaos**


	26. Reality Bites-Part 26

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 26

**

Teb was getting sick of listening to annoying boy bands, and watching them dance around in corny videos. 

"Can we please watch ANYTHING ELSE?!" Teb said, sounding very annoyed. 

"What would we watch, nothing else is on."Jubilee said, matter of factly. 

"Well, let's see..." Teb said, and snatched the controller away from jubilee. 

"Hey! That's not fair!" Jubilee whined. 

Teb ignored her and changed the channel to HBO, where some dark murder mystery movie was on. 

"Oh look..." Teb said and glared at Jubes "Something better..." 

The group shut up and started watching the movie. At the first sight of blood, all three GenX girls left the room. Jono figured the reason Teb put this on was simply to get them away... he figured he should leave too. Ev, however, seemed interested in the movie. 

~Well, I'm off to the danger room...~ Jono telepathically said, looking at ev, who didn't say anything. 

~Maybe I can get in a good spar with someone...~ he tried again. 

Ev still didn't say anything. 

~Ev, let's go.~ 

Ev looked back and saw Jono nod his head toward the bed where Ange and Teb sat. 

"Oooohhh, ok." Ev said, and the two left Teb and Angelo alone at last. 

Teb grinned and turned off the tv. They both sat up in the same position they were before. 

"Oh look, something better..." Teb said and gave Ange a small seductive smile. 

"Finally alone." Ange agreed, and kissed her again running his fingers through her soft hair. Teb returned the favor and kissed Ange's neck. 

_~knock knock~_

"Oh, not again.." Teb moaned. 

_~knock knock~_

"I'll get it, chica." Ange said, and started to get up. 

"No no, let me, you're too soft. If it's Jubilee, I swear that girl's getting a taste of my fist." Teb cursed as she went to get the door. 

"What!" Teb said in a very annoyed tone as she jerked the door open. 

Storm stood in the doorway holding a bucket and a mop. "Jubilee told me the paint was yours." she said. 

"Aw... gee Ro... can't it wait?" Teb pleaded. 

"NOW..." Storm said and walked away, leaving the two very disappointed teenagers alone again. 

Teb and Ange went downstairs and did as they were told . 

~At least she didn't see the painting...~ Teb thought to herself. 

When they were done cleaning, they headed back upstairs. Teb flopped down on the bed. 

"Remind me never to drag paint in when I'm staying at the 'spic and span' X-Mansion." Teb said. sarcastically. 

Angelo smiled and laid down on top of her supporting himself with his arms. He kissed Teb long and hard, and then pulled away. They both looked at the door and waited. 

"All clear..." Teb said, and gave Ange a smile. 

She rolled on top of him and gave him another kiss. Ange put his hands up her shirt and Teb pulled off Ange's shirt completely. 

_~knock knock~_

"WHAT?!?" they both screamed at the same time at the door. 

"It's Scott," came the muffled voice of Cyclops through the door, "Open the door." 

Angelo got up, "Stupid house, can't get any privacy" he grumbled as he opened the door a little ways and stuck out his head. "What..." he said in a harsh voice. 

"Well," Scott said, and tried to look into the room, "I was thinking. With your relationship with Teb, it would be better if you two kids didn't share a room." he said. 

"WHAT?!?! NO WAY!" Teb yelled from inside the room, and stormed over to the door opening it all the way. Ange figured it was a good time to put his shirt back on. 

"I'm 16 years old, damnit... I can choose my own roommate. And let me guess... you'd pair me up with Monet!" Teb accused Scott. 

"Well... actually yes, I figured..." Scott started to say. 

"NO!!!" Teb screamed at the top of her lungs and slammed the door. 

She waited for Scott to come barging through the door and take her out of the room by force, but he didn't. Teb looked through the peep hole and saw Scott still outside, scratching his head with a 'what now' look on his face. He finally shrugged and walked away. Teb smiled to herself, locked the door and turned around. 

"The kids are in bed," Teb said slowly stepping to Ange "the paints all cleaned up, and I just chewed out the sheriff." she finished, and sat on Ange's lap on the bed. 

"And I bought Ro a new toaster." Ange said, and smiled... and the two finally got their privacy. 

**Teb**

**_~Detention Level~_**

Cara could feel the power from her friends...strength beyond her imagination pulsed through her veins, increasing her own powers a hundred fold. She felt disconnected from her surroundings, yet in a way, she was connected to everything in the world... in the universe... in a way that she hadn't thought was possible. 

She could feel every single emotion from every creature that existed in every galaxy... in every earth from every dimension. Cara even knew what her family was feeling at home. She drew more strength from that... from the love she felt coming from them. 

Cara concentrated on all of the love she felt everywhere, and drew it into her. When she could not hold anymore, she let it ALL out, directly at Kyle. Her intention? Not to kill...but to heal. 

She hoped that she could merge Kyle and Jamar back into one personality, one being... fully healed. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Outside, Cara #2~_**

Cara stared with wide eyes as she watched the events unfold. Everything around her seemed to be moving in slow motion. She watched as Rogue took a fighting stance in between Wolverine and Jonas...Sammi was standing at Jonas's side, torn between her love for her father and her love for her soulmate. Father against daughter, Daughter against Father...Friend against friend...Cara just couldn't take it happening all over again. 

"STOP!!!" she cried out, and rushed over in between Rogue and Wolverine. 

"Get outta my way, kid, if ya know what's good for ya...that thing ain't Jonas...and nothin's gonna stop me from takin' it out..." Wolverine growled. 

"Over my dead body, Logan!" said Rogue, who came up to stand in front of Cara. 

"If that's the way it's gotta be, then that's the way I'm gonna do it." Wolverine growled, He advanced toward Rogue with steely eyes. 

/How can I make him understand?/ Cara thought anxiously. 

Her eyes widened as she began to feel the backflow from the other Cara's increased powers... Cara then understood what she had to do. She stepped in front of Rogue once again, and advanced toward Wolverine. He growled at her, but she kept coming. When she reached Logan, she suddenly grabbed a hold of his head, one hand on each side of his face. 

"It really is Jonas, Wolverine...I know you can't feel it but I can...I know...and I can help you to understand it too. Please Logan...feel what I feel." she said, as she began to feed her emotions and knowledge into Wolverine. 

She concentrated on everything she felt from Jonas, and let Wolverine feel it...She hoped that he would understand what it all meant. 

**_~Astral Plane~_**

"NO!!! Cara is disrupting all of my plans...I will not allow it! Cara MUST Die!!!" cried Anon, as she writhed in pure agony. Love was the one emotion that could hurt her the most...she would make Cara pay. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Hope, told through her point of view~_**

From the moment that I awoke, I could feel all of the complexities of the air around me. My scientific mind reasoned that because of the time that I had spent on my earth playing such games as Dungeons and Dragons and other RPG games, that it would only be reasonable to assume that my powers would stem from my overactive imagination. The other half of my mind screamed that there was no way in hell that this could have happened. However, reality has a sick way of reaching up and biting one in the ass. 

From a great distance someone was in a great amount of pain, confusion, and turmoil. That in it's self spoke of desperation. I am Hope. Rather I am the embodiment of hope. Having come to this realization, I rushed forth from this medical facility to aid whomever it was that I was sensing. 

I was not, however, prepared to find myself face to face with the formidable Wolverine. He looked like he was about to enter one of his berserker rages. At the same time I could feel on the astral side someone enmeshed in a struggle for control and dominance, and feel someone struggling to break free. I could feel my powers rushing forth as I began to speak. 

"Hold thy selves in stillness and let Hope fill thy senses," I incanted. A burst of power rushed forth to the one that was attempting to join together the mind that had been torn apart. 

"In Hope there is the further power to heal and in that is the true power," I further intoned. 

Another burst of power swept forward and engulfed everyone in peace and well being for fellow man. With that final burst I could feel what little power that I had built up drain from me and I gave in to the darkness that overwhelmed me. 

**Lady_Yann**

**_~The Astral Plane~_**

Amanda was focusing all her energy to Cara, hoping beyond hope that it would be enough. She didn't fully understand Cara's powers, but she knew deep down inside that they would be able to help Jamar. So intent on her goal was she, that she didn't sense the presence behind her. She felt an intense pain, and then found herself on a dark isolated part of the plane. 

(Hello, we haven't been properly introduced. I am Anon.) chimed a silvery voice from out of the mist. 

The grey dark mist grew darker. 

(Why can't I see you?) Amanda asked. 

(I do not wish it. I wanted you to be here when I take another of your teammates away.) spoke the voice of Anon. 

(No!!!!! Why are you doing this? What have we done to you?) Amanda frantically asked. 

(Be quiet!! You'll miss the show.) 

Amanda watch in horror as a bolt of pure dark energy left the cloud and headed out. She saw that its target was a sphere of pure white light. She knew instantly that it was Cara. She quickly used a psychic bolt to separate Logan and Cara, while at the same time pull Cara off the plane. 

Before she could perform the latter, the cloud released another bolt straight at her. She watched in horror as the first bolt nailed the white sphere, and destroyed it. Amanda let out a scream. 

Anon laughed. (That's another one down. You seem to be losing team members rather quickly. So much for your leadership skills.) 

Amanda slowly got to her feet and wiped the tears from her eyes. She faced the dark cloud as the energy built up inside of her. 

(You won't hurt another member of my team. Cara made a challenge, and I am going to finish it for her right now.) 

Anon smiled. /This will be interesting. I wonder what these misfits will do without a leader./ 

Amanda blocked most of the attack from her opponent. The cloud had taken the shape of a dark knight, and was using it's own psychic sword. Amanda was relying heavily on her weapons training to avoid getting killed. Anon had brought her to such a deserted part of the plane, that she could not contact anyone. She had asked her dragon protectors to find Charles to help her, but they had not returned. 

(You fight well. I did not think you were that good. Sinister will be pleased to learn he has created a telepath as worthy as Xavier.) Anon leered. 

Amanda blocked a swing and retaliated with a slash of her own. The psychic sword connected with the figure and sent it back a few steps. Amanda switched weapons to a bow and arrow, and nailed the figured with three arrows, causing it to back away further. She then switched to staff and went onto the offensive, delivering blow after blow. 

(I won't allow you to hurt my friends.) Amanda said. 

(You already are.) countered Anon. (You see, all the X-men are witnessing this battle in their minds, but are unable to reach you. When I kill you, they will all feel your pain and death. It will be a spiritual moment.) Laughed Anon. 

Amanda focused on her task as she blocked two more lightning bolts. She knew that she was on her own now, and she couldn't give up. Anon seem to strive on negativity and pain. She had attacked Cara when she produced a ray of pure emotions. Maybe the way to slow Anon down was to use positive emotion to counter the negative ones. 

She hoped that the X-men and Vision X could pick up her thoughts, and think of someway to generate that kind of emotion... because she didn't think that she would be able to win this fight alone. the only thing she knew was she was going to have to take on Anon for as long as it took, because she couldn't afford to die. Too much was at stake. 

**A.C.**

Anon looked and smiled. Did she really think that she was able to put up the fraction of a fight that was needed? 

"Come child... show your power... avenge your team members... I will feed off you too." she goaded. 

Amanda only screamed as an answer, and launched every small part of power inside her at Anon. Xavier felt as for a moment the entire astral plane was about to be ripped in two, as Amanda brought her power to the very peak of endurance. 

"NOOO!!!!" Azmaru screamed in her head. "It's what she..." he was cut off as she used their power as well, and the two Dragons got sucked right back in to her mind... out in the real world Jonas clutched his head as Thanagar cried out a painful plead for help. "Stop her... before she kills herself." 

Anon was taken back, the intense power of Amanda was incredible, most likely surpassing the great Xavier himself by light-years... But what Amanda failed to realized was that Anon was tapped into her powers by the serum Sinister had used on them all... She savored Amanda's pain in pushing her mind so far off the edge. 

"Nice try... now feel as I ravage your mind as a ripe fruit..." Anon grabbed through the power and Amanda saw an astral formed hand dive through the void and grab her head. Her world was ripped in thousands of pieces... and shattered like the wind... she felt herself die away and the pain stabbed at her mind like a million knifes. 

Anon saw how Amanda's astral form faded to mist and vanished... and she could feel her mind drift into oblivion, so much better than death she would be able to savor this forever. 

"Count this fight out now, and you have made a grieve error." Azmaru said as he was using himself to hold Amanda's mind in place... 

Anon looked confused... what was this creature? Suddenly, She felt a stabbing pain in her arm... ANOTHER DRAGON... Thanagar, still uncertain to the extent of his power in his astral form, had taken a casual approach that had often proven affective in fight against human Dragon slayers. He bit down on her arm, glad that it was only an astral form... human taste did not appeal to him. 

She screamed as she realized that this was Not Amanda, and she could not manipulate them as the others. She screamed even louder as Thanagar ripped her arm from it's socket, and Anon felt like a part of her mind was torn from her body and she lashed out at him sending him flying. 

"Did I hurt you? Witch that savors the pain of others... feel pain yourself, you attack my protected... you attack me... now feel the wrath of MY attack up on thy." 

Thanagar was to spray Anon with fire... but instead massive amount of psi powers unleashed at her and she vanished... 

But she was not dead... she was thrown back in to her own body, unprepared of the attack that had been thrown upon her. She would come back... and they would all pay. She swore it. 

**Admiral**

**_~Outside~_**

Sammi snapped out of it as she saw Anon vanish. She felt Jonas's pain and kneeled giving him a hug. Then she looked over at Cara. Logan was taking her pulse. To the horror of everyone, the lifeless Cara suddenly disintegrated, and vanished...no trace was left behind. 

Logan looked up at Sammi, "I'm sorry, darlin'." he said. 

Sammi started shaking her head, "No, She's alive... I feel it. But Amanda is close to not being." 

She helped Jonas stand and handed him over to Rogue and said,"Get him, Amanda, and Hope all to the medlab. Find out what happened to the other Cara and meet me there." And she was gone. 

Logan watched as she headed for the garden. /Now what is she up to?/He thought as he helped Rogue. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi ran to the garden, and quickly went in search of what she needed. 

/Nine clovers, nine rosebuds, and nine daisies./ She thought as she went over the check list in her head, /Now, basil.../ She ran back into the house and tore into the spice rack, /Basil, got it./ She quickly made her way upstairs and into Amanda's room, /Now, where would she put it? Oh, there it is./ She thought as she grabbed Amanda's perfume, /Now all I need is paper./ She ran down towards the med lab and grabbed the pad and pen that was on the table in the hall by the phone. 

When she opened the door to the medlab, she saw everyone there and said, "I don't mean to be rude but I need only Jonas, Amanda, Cara, Jamar, and Hope here. I need everyone else to leave, Please." 

They all saw the look on her face. One of concern and of determination. They all left her alone. 

Sammi spread one arm across Hank's desk, and in a swift movement everything was on the floor. 

/Sorry, Hank./ She thought quickly. 

She laid the items on the table and grabbed a beaker and five candles that were on one of the shelves. She set the candles at the points making a star. She set the beaker in front of it and thought, /You better have been right about this too, Harmony./ 

She grabbed the flowers and held them in her hands and said, 

"Petals soft, and fragrance pure  
Love of family will endure." 

She placed the flowers in the beaker gently and picked up the basil and poured some in her hand and said, 

"Herb of friendship  
Herb of love  
Power of sympathy  
Purity of a dove.  
Bring the energy  
Of Spirit above." 

She put the basil in the glass. and picked up the perfume. 

"Scent of mine  
Love times nine." 

And she put nine drops of the perfume in the glass and set the bottle down. She picked up the paper and the pen and quickly wrote everyone's name on it. And said, 

"This our names in my hand of write.  
I mix, I stir, I make things right.  
I bring the change, with loving light." 

She looked at the potion. There was something missing, she looked around the room and saw it. She ran over to the self and grabbed the bottle of honey. /I'm glad Hank likes tea with honey./She thought as she headed back to the desk. 

She poured the honey in to the glass and said, "Liquid gold, fluid of love, gift of herbal gold Meld together the energies of this group." 

She picked up on of the covers and placed it on top and started chanting, "I bring the change, with loving light. Let my friends be healed by this night." 

She said it nine times and then placed the glass in the center of the star and said, 

"With harm to none. May all astrological correspondences be correct For this working, and may this spell not reverse or place upon us any curse. Let our love combine and be never broken. Healing us all in the same token. So mote it be! The change has begun!" 

She picked up the glass and shook it again nine times and left the med lab and walked outside. She walked to Her and Jonas's tree and dug a hole at the base. She placed the glass in the hole and looked up to the sky and said, "Goddess, combine with me and so mote it be." She covered the glass and went back to the house and in to the med lab. She sat in the middle of the floor and started to meditate. 

She heard the door open and Xavier come into the room. He didn't say anything but she knew what he was thinking. 

"I worked a healing and protection spell. It's for all of us. It's bound by love so not even Anon can break it, but on that note she won't even know about it. Evil can never fully see good." She said not even opening her eyes. 

He nodded and said,"That's true. Evil is blinded by hate to see that good always has an extra trick. How did you know the spell?" He asked. 

She was still concentrating, but also said," I don't know. I never heard it before in my life. I just knew what to get and what to say so I did it. I felt in my heart that it was right." With that she turned her head to face him. 

"Your heart will never stray you in the wrong direction." He said and she nodded. He left and she went back to meditating. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi heard the door open again and heard Hank say,"Do you want to test it now?" 

"Yeah, We should have the results in a few moments so we can inject them while they're sleeping."she said. 

She got up and walked over to the syringes, picked one up and turned around and saw his face as he looked at the desk. 

"Sorry, Hank. I was in a hurry. I'll help you clean it up. Here, do it quick." she said. She handed him the needle and held her arm out. He quickly pricked her and injected the vaccine into her blood stream. He threw the needle away and started to clean the mess up. She bent to help him. 

**_~An Hour Later~_**

Sammi and Hank were taking turns looking into the microscope. "I can't believe we did it." Hank said happily and gave Sammi a hug. 

She smiled and said,"I couldn't have done it without you, Blue. Now, let's get everyone vaccinated, so that in the morning, we'll ALL be ready for Sinister. You take the rest, I'll handle these guys." 

Hank left and Sammi walked over to Cara and gave her the shot. Then she moved to Jamar, followed by Hope... at least that's what she thought the Lady's name was. Besides, even if it wasn't, it fit her. Next was Amanda. 

Sammi leaned her head down to her ear and said,"Don't forget to leave some of Anon and Sinister for me, oh fearless leader." She smiled. 

Finally she walked over to Jonas. She had to have a special needle made for him. She quickly did it and threw the needles away. Then she turned and looked at all of them and said,"I know we'll beat them. I know we will." 

She walked back over to Jonas and crawled into the bed with him and snuggled close. She placed her head on his chest and started counting his heart beats and she fell asleep before she got to ten. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas was in pain, but it was not his pain... it was Amanda's. He had felt Sammi's spell, and if he had been awake he would have helped her... but he was trapped in Amanda's Mind... and her mind was spread across the entire Astral plane. Only being held together by Azmaru who for all his wisdom was fighting a losing battle. 

"He can't hold this great a mind however much he may want." Thanagar said and looked at Azmaru's fading astral form. 

Jonas clenched his fist fighting the pain. "Can.. We help?" 

"She has to want to come back herself. The witch did good, her fear and self hate is so connected that she thinks it's better that she leaves, we have to show her that is not so." Thanagar said and grabbed a piece of Amanda's mind... it was like a piece of shattered glass... millions of pieces that were floating around on the astral plane. 

"Xavier is showing her his love, but it is not close to what is needed, her pain is so great that she doesn't see it." he let go of the shard of glass. 

Sammi fell asleep and subconsciousness used her telepathy to drift in to Jonas mind. Suddenly she was standing on the astral plane with Jonas... she looked surprised, But Jonas gathered her up in a big hug and she relaxed and let his arms calm her down. 

"Sammi, I need your help. We must talk to Amanda, this will hurt, but if we don't she will drift into oblivion and be gone forever." Jonas said whispering into her ear. Sammi could tell that he was hurting. 

She knew what to do, and opened her mind and started to take in as much of Amanda's consciousness she could, and at the same time her pain. Sammi dragged Amanda in kicking and screaming, she collapsed in pain in to Jonas arms. 

She closed her eyes in pain and pushed her forehead to Jonas chest, as Jonas shared her pain trying to take as much of it away from his love as possible. 

A weak astral image of Amanda started to form in front of them the combination of Azmaru and Xavier and Sammi had brought Amanda back a small bit, it was now up to her. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara struggled to regain consciousness...she felt like she was floating, falling, and had the distinct impression that part of her was missing. When Anon's psionic blast had destroyed the other Cara, Cara's mind had fragmented...part of her had been pulled away into an unknown realm, and lost. 

**_~Dream Realm~_**

/Where am I? What is this place?/ The other Cara said into the dark void. She could remember the intense pain from Anon's psionic blast as it ripped through her, and then succumbing to the darkness...there hadn't been time to scream. 

~Patience my child, patience...all of your questions will be answered, but you must have patience.~ a silvery voice filled her head. 

/ANON!!!/ thought Cara. 

~No my child, I am not Anon...I am her sister, Ymela, the Dreamweaver...Protector of the Skies, and Keeper of Dreams.~ 

/Sister...? But I thought that Sinister created Anon in his lab!? Does that mean he made you too?/ 

~No, child...we existed long before Sinister...Though he is responsible for Anon's recent transformations...~ 

/What Transformations?/ she asked. 

~Patience, my child...your questions WILL be answered in time, but for now, you must awaken.~ 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara's eyes flickered open...she was groggy, and felt disoriented, disconnected. It took her a few moments to understand where she was. 

/The medlab? What am I doing here? What happened?/ she wondered. 

Suddenly, the memories from the previous events flooded her mind. She remembered the increase in her powers, and trying to heal Jamar/Kyle. She remembered the battle between Amanda and Anon, and Anon destroying the psycic image of the other Cara. Tears filled Cara's eyes as she remembered the pain coursing through her body...she wasn't sure how she had survived. She then remembered Sammi...Sammi had done something to help her. She wasn't sure what it was, but she was grateful. 

As Cara became less groggy, tears again filled eyes. She could feel the pain from her friends...so many had been hurt. Hope gave everything she had to help Cara, and was again lying unconscious in the medlab. Beast was attending to her...Cara knew he'd taken a liking to this sleeping beauty. Jonas and Sammi were there too, as well as Amanda. 

/Oh, no...Amanda!!!/ Cara thought. 

Amanda had been hurt, and nearly destroyed. The only ones keeping her alive right now were Sammi and Jonas. 

/Amanda, Hope, Sammi, Jonas, Jamar...if there is anything I can do, I will give everything I have to help you./ Cara thought, and as she once again succumbed to unconsciousness, her last thoughts were of Jamar. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Amanda's Mind~_**

Amanda felt as if she was being pulled in ten different directions; nothing was clear in the void she was in. She knew instinctively that she wasn't dead yet, but was close to it. She also knew her friends, dragons and love were fighting for her. She wanted to go to them, but held back. She didn't know why. 

Suddenly, a light flashed in front of her and she saw her room. It was purple and black, just as it was when she last saw it. In the bed she saw herself sleeping peacefully. 

/IS this just a dream?/ she wondered. 

(Yes...) replied a voice, (Go back home.) 

Amanda didn't know whether to listen to the voice or go back to her friends. She was so tired. Maybe it would be better to wake up. Maybe this was all just a dream and any moment she could wake up and be plain Amanda. 

(Your friends need you.) stated another voice. 

Amanda considered that possibility. What if this was a trick? What if this was an attempt to get her to abandon her friends? If she left them, would they be okay? Did she really matter to them? 

(No.) replied the 1st voice. 

(Yes.) replied the 2nd voice. 

The decision was up to her. This reality offered pain and hardship, but it also offered friendship and a love she had always wanted. The 2nd offered peace, and the simplicity of be the loner. Of not worrying about others all the time, or of losing someone special. She had to choose. 

Amanda remembered what Sammi said about responsibility. Sometimes, the hard path is forced on you. Amanda also believed it was also the most rewarding. 

(I think you are stuck with me.) Amanda stated as she felt her friends pulling her back. 

**A.C.**

Amanda screamed in pain as her astral form pulled back together, and her mind reformed. But even as it did, it was still scrambled, far from healed... but now back where it belonged. 

Jonas smiled a weak smiled and reached out a hand for Amanda, knowing she was ok. He drifted out from the astral plane, his task was over, and after him followed Sammi as she let go of Amanda's mind and drifted back. 

Thanagar grabbed Amanda's form in his arms, and wrapped her up in his wings as he once tried to protect his newborn. This time, nothing would harm his protected, but she would have to learn to let them protect her, to trust them both... 

Xavier's astral form appeared in front of Thanagar, and for a moment it looked like Thanagar was going to protect her even from him... but he unwrapped his wings and handed her limp form to him. 

They said nothing... But there was a mutual respect for each other. 

Azmaru slipped back in to Amanda's mind to try and help her heal, Thanagar stayed behind a moment and watched Xavier, and then did the same. 

Xavier exited the astral plane, after putting Amanda's mind back in to her body. Soon he found himself in the medlab, holding her hand. He almost lost her today, that was more then he could bear... 

*Your love saved her... Take good care of her Human, or I will banish you to the void... if I so have to fight you to my last breath.* Thanagar said as Xavier lightly connected to Amanda's bruised mind, and he could feel her... even if he could feel that Thanagar was grinning as he spoke the words, Xavier knew that if he ever were to put force behind them, Thanagar would make an formidable opponent. 

**Admiral**


	27. Reality Bites-Part 27

Disclaimer: All Marvel characters belong to Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 27

**

**_~Medlab~_**

"Ack! Hey Hank...When did the Juggernaut learn to tap dance?" A very shaky and mentally whole Jamar rises up in the diagnostic bed and slips gently out onto the floor. 

"I assure you Jamar that Mr. Marco has not been dancing anywhere near the mansion as of late. I recommend that you return to bed." Beast ways as he rises from the bed side of the resident Sleeping Beauty. 

"I'm fine..." He stops as he sees his reflection in the mirror across the room. There had been several changes made do to his fusion with Kyle. His once black hair was now white with a bluish tint, reminding him of electric discharges. Plus his eyes were permanent swirling vortexes of rainbow energy. Shaking off the shock of his new features he continues to rise, removing the sensors from his body. 

/Am I ever gonna get away from people sticking sensors to my body or what?/ he thought to himself. 

Beast steps over to bar him from leaving the medlab. 

/I wonder if this'll work. Well it worked in the movie./ 

"I'M FINE, ALL I REALLY NEED IS SOME FRESH AIR!" Jamar says, letting psionic energy surge in every word. 

"You're fine Jamar, all you really need is a little fresh air." Beast says, as if he were in a trance. 

"I CAN GO NOW!" Jamar orders. 

"You can go now." 

Before leaving Jamar steps over to Cara. "Thank you!" He says as he moves the hair from her face and kisses her gently upon her lips. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Where's Iceman?" Jamar asked the computer. 

[[BOBBY DRAKE IS LOCATED IN HIS ROOM IN THE UPPER LEVEL.]] The computer chimed. 

KNOCK! KNOCK! 

A very groggy Bobby answers his door. "What is it Jamar?" Jamar places his hand on Bobby's forehead and smiles. "Sorry Bobby I guess I must have the wrong room." 

"That's alright man. I guess your head's still a little messed up." Bobby shuts the door and heads back to the comfort of his bed and lady love. Jamar walks off adrift in his own thoughts. 

/That's one...If I'm gonna be any help to the others tomorrow I've gotta practice. It may be cheating, but a flash psionic teaching program is just what the doctor ordered. I wonder who should be next?/ 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee walked down the hall, wiping off her damp forehead with a towel. She had just had a long workout in the danger room. After that, she had gone into Kitty Pryde's old dance studio and rehearsed her pointe and tap routines. Now her body hurt, but she felt a lot calmer. All she wanted now was a hot shower, a nap and Remy. In that order. And anyone who got in her way was dead. 

As she walked down the hall towards the bathroom, she passed Teb. She was going to the bathroom as well. Leilee assumed she was going to be taking a shower, since she looked sweaty and flushed as well. As Leilee passed her and slipped into the bathroom she called out, "Nice hickey, Teb." 

Teb grinned. "Yours is nice, too." 

Leilee grinned back and winked as she stepped into the bathroom. Now for that shower..... 

**Leilee**

**_~Medlab~_**

Sammi slowly opened her eyes, she was still tired but she had to get up and see if Amanda was alright. She turned over onto her side, then...."Ouch!" She yelped as she fell on the floor. She landed on her side and slowly got up to a sitting position. She rubbed her head and opened her eyes to see Hank looking at her with a huge smile on his face. 

"I'm glad my pain makes you laugh." She said as she heard another laugh from behind her. She tilted her head back and saw Jonas leaning over the side of the bed laughing at her. She pointed at him and said,"Don't you start or I'll have Amanda reenact the Chicken Dance." that caused Jonas to stop laughing but he still had the goofy grin plastered on his face. She slowly got up, and almost fell down again because her head hurt, but Jonas caught her. 

"Careful." He said as he got out of the bed and helped her stand. 

"Thanks." She said to him. Then she turned to the professor who was sitting by Amanda and holding her hand and asked,"Is she going to be ok?" 

"Yes. She just needs rest. As all of you do. You two should go to your room and get a better sleep. You all need to be fully rested for tomorrow if you're going to defeat Sinister." He said to them. 

Sammi looked around the room and saw that Jamar's bed was empty. "Where did Jamar go?" She asked Hank. 

"He was better and needed some fresh air." He said. 

Sammi looked at him and then at Jonas and telepathically said,"Why did that sound like a Jedi mind trick?" 

"I don't know but you're right. Let's find him." Jonas said as he put his arm around her and headed out of the medlab. 

"We better find Yoda before he has my father give him the keys to the jeep." She said as they rounded the corner. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara stirred as she felt someone smooth the hair away from her face. She heard a somehow familiar voice say "Thank You.", then something warm and tender gently brush against her lips. 

/Mmmmm...nice.../ Cara hazily thought, as a warm, fuzzy feeling came over her. She felt very happy as she drifted back to sleep. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

A few minutes later, Cara woke up again. She stared up at the ceiling, and sighed happily...she had dreamt that Jamar had kissed her. She smiled at the memory, stretched, then rolled over onto her stomach. Cara glanced at Jamar's bed. 

/Hmm, empty...I wonder where he's gone? Wait a minute...If he's up and out of bed, then...maybe he really did kiss me!?/ Cara thought. She blushed, and her red eyes sparkled. /Cool!/ A silly grin plastered itself on her face. 

Cara rolled over into a sitting position, and looked around at the other beds. She noticed that both Sammi and Jonas were also missing. She wondered where they were at. 

"Hey, Hank...where did everyone go?" she called to Beast, where he sat gazing at the sleeping Hope. 

Beast turned around and said, "Jamar was better and needed some fresh air." 

/That line sounds like it came out of Star Wars.../ Cara thought as she grinned. 

"Where are Sammi and Jonas?" she asked. 

"I do believe they have gone to find Jamar..." Beast said as he rose from his seat, picked up a syringe, and began walking toward Cara. 

"I am afraid I am going to have to sedate you, before you do the same. You really must rest Cara...you have had a very traumatic experience, and are not fully recovered. Now, hold still..." He said, as he tried to take a hold of her arm. 

Cara's eyes flashed...she wasn't about to let Beast sedate her... 

"Look into my eyes..." she said in a dramatic tone of voice, as she opened her eyes wide. 

Beast looked into them, wondering what she was up to. 

Cara grinned...her eyes had nothing to do with her empathic powers...she'd just always wanted to say that line. Cara concentrated her empathic powers, focusing on Beast's concern for Hope, then she doubled it...making it override Beast's concern for herself. 

"Hank...I think Hope needs you right now...maybe you should go over and see how she is doing?" she suggested to Hank. 

Hank's brow furrowed...for some reason he wasn't feeling quite rationally. "You...you...wait right here, I will be right back. Just stay put..." he said as he turned around and moved back to Hope's bedside. 

/Yeah, right.../ Cara thought as she silently slipped off of the bed, and quickly exited the room. She hated doing that to Hank, but she really needed to get out of there. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

/Man, walking around this place is tiring me out. Well, I suppose I could just teleport around./ Jamar thought to himself. 

"That would not be wise 'First One'. You start teleporting around and the alarms will go off all over the mansion, plus you'll burn half the mansion down. You should have practiced and learned more about your powers." Zeklos says as he steps out in front of Jamar. 

"It's not my fault. I've spent most of my time here off and on in the medlab with sensors on me or being locked up. I'm not even sure what all my powers are." 

**Open your mind to me 'First One' and I'll share the knowledge that was taken from you when the merging occurred.** Images and conversations flood his mind as he realizes the extent of the powers his other personalities possessed. Zeklos then fades into the woodwork, literally. 

/Thanks Zeklos./ Jamar begins rising from the floor as he shifts his telekinesis inward and flies up the stairs heading for the attic. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi and Jonas head outside in search of Jamar. All is quiet... too quiet considering the range of senses that Jonas and Sammi possessed. 

"Damnit where is he? I can't even pick him up telepathically." Sammi said. 

Jonas shivers as he stretches out his senses. "It's like someone dropped us in a cone of silence or something." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Outside the attic door Jamar stops. /Well I can use the same trick I used on Iceman. Hmmm...I wonder./ Jamar's eyes close shut as he seeks out the mansion's resident shapeshifter. /I hope this works./ His eyes open; the swirling rainbow is no longer there, now his eyes are bright red. As his eyes and face shift, so does the rest of his body until he's duplicated Gambit. 

"Gambit got skills, no?" Jamar laughs realizing he killed the accent a bit. 

_~Knock! Knock!~_

"Oh! Remy what brings you up this way so early? Is there something wrong?" asks Storm when she answers the door. 

"No. I jest sees yo'r light on and t'ought I'd jest say 'ello." He looks at Storm faking a worried look as he caresses the side of her face. 

"Are you alright? _YOU NEED TO REST!_" 

With a deep intake of air Storm yawns. "I need to rest." She then fall asleep on her feet falling into Jamar's arms. He lays her on the bed. He places a hand on her forehead like he did with Iceman. 

"_YOU'VE BEEN DREAMING!_" He says taking a step towards the window as Storm mumbles something. 

Jamar jumps from the window Icing up his body like Iceman but hits the ground as a puddle of water which reforms itself into Jamar./Cool!!!/ 

Jamar begins sensing that some of the others have noticed he's gone, and have come looking for him. A devious look crosses his face. One of the side effects of merging with Kyle was he got Kyle's devious and sometimes insane sense of humour. He knew his sister and Jonas were on the other end of the mansion and Cara was the closest to him. 

/She probably picked up on my emotions./ he thought. He then sends out a fake call to Sammi and Jonas. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Jonas did you hear that?" Sammi asked. 

"Yeah. Do you think Jamar is lost in the woods?" Jonas replied. 

"That would be just like him to get back into trouble right away. The sound is coming from the Northern Sector." 

**_~Southern Sector~_**

Cara had followed Jamar thus far. She kept picking up feelings of joy and anticipation. 

/I wonder what's up. The feelings get stronger as I move forward and haven't lessened, so I guess he's stopped. I hope he's alright./ she wonders to herself. 

As she entered a clearing she was met with a startling discovery. The clearing was covered in snow. In the very center stood a gazebo made of ice and right beside it a snowman. Inside the gazebo stood Jamar with a nervous look on his face. As she walked up to it the snowman moved helping her up the icy steps. 

Inside she could see that there was a porch swing set up suspended from the icy roof. Two lights illuminated the whole scene which upon closer inspection were found to be floating flames giving everything a magical feel. She entered the gazebo and it began to snow lightly. She slipped as she came through the heart-shaped archway falling into Jamar's arms. 

"Do you like it Cara?" No words described her feelings as they kissed in the snowy grove. 

**Chaos**

**_~Dream Realm~_**

Ymela smiles as she sees in the fire, a new romance blossom, Cara and Jamar. She nods with approval looking at the romantic surroundings Jamar created. 

"This young man does have talent," she says in her silvery voice to the fire as she watches. "It's good to see such caring people get together" 

She gently blows on the fire and the vision changes to where she sees Anon, lying down, bruised hurt, from her latest thrashing from Amanda and her supporters. 

"Oh, Anon, look what has happened to you." A silvery tear falls into the fire and makes a hissing sound. 

The tear causes the vision to change and she sees all of the members of Vision X. 

~~Good luck to all of you in your upcoming battle~~ she says, her voice heard in the minds of all Vision X. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Teb went back into the room. Angelo was sound asleep on the bed. Teb looked at him and smiled and walked over to the window to look up at the moon. 

She got the good luck message in her head. She was worried at first, but she figured if whoever it was was wishing them good luck, then they must be a friend. 

I wonder what's been going around here these past few hours, Teb thought to herself. 

**TEB**

**_~Northern Sector~_**

"This is stupid, he is fooling around with us." Jonas grabbed Sammi from behind and his wings shot out from his back and he is in the air the next second. 

"HEY!!!!" Sammi yells, unprepared for Jonas's sudden outburst. 

Jonas quickly found Jamar and Cara's scent, and his heart melted... he was glad that they had found love. But he was angry that neither of them understood that they should rest. He and Sammi flew in the direction of the Gazebo. 

**Admiral**

**_~Southern Sector~_**

As Jamar's kisses become more passionate, Cara pushes away from him gently but firmly. 

"I'm sorry but I can't do this..." her eyes pleading with Jamar for him to understand. 

"I've never been intimate with anyone before, and I want to wait. I hope you understand. You are truly special to me, but I made a promise to myself, that I wouldn't give myself to anyone before getting married. It is a code that I have lived by for a long time and if we do this it will change me and not really for the better. I will be so full of guilt that it will shatter our new found love." she speaks straight from the heart. 

Jamar can feel from their link that she is telling the truth. 

"Please... don't be angry with me." Cara says in a shaky voice. 

Cara's eyes sparkle with tears threatening to overflow, she runs out of the enchanted area into the night, her emotions chaotic, and uncertain. 

Jamar looks stunned, as he watches his love dash off into the night. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~Sammi and Jonas~_**

As they were flying, they didn't notice Cara as she slipped out of the Gazebo and into the night. Jonas slammed down beside the gazebo, letting go of Sammi. 

"Are you two not supposed to be resting?" Jonas said, looking into the Gazebo. It was then he noticed that Cara was not there. 

Jamar didn't like his tone of voice. "It's ok, _I CAN REST LATER._" Jamer said to them both, but this time it didn't work. 

Jonas and Sammi both felt the telepathic suggestion in their heads... Sammi looked coldly at him. 

"Do try that again, fool." Jonas said angry, he was not fond of having his mind toyed with, not after being killed telepathically. 

"Ohhh, I'm so scared." Jamar said teasing him. 

"You should get some rest now, if we have to go up against Sinister tomorrow, we must all be in shape." Jonas said knowing that one slip up in that battle could be fatal for them all. 

Jamar narrowed his eyes. "Who made you boss?" 

Jonas took a step forward. "I'm no boss, but it's saying the same thing you will get from anyone in the team, now get some rest." He said calmly. 

"Why don't you cool down a bit." Jamar said and smiled as he formed as thick layer of ice half way up over Jonas body. "I'm not taking this from you, even if you are my sister's boyfriend." 

Sammi was about to say something, but she heard a thought from Jonas that they needed to settle this if they were to work together. 

"I'm asking you again Jamar, first remove this ice, then get some rest." Jonas relaxed his mind... 

Jamar stood his ground interested what Jonas would do. 

Jamar heard a sound behind him and swung around only to be wrapped up in tentacles... that came out of the ground, and a split second later he was buried up to his neck in the ground so tight that he could barely breath. 

The ice around Jonas vaporized. "As you may have noticed, I have magical control of Fire, wind, Water AND *earth*... Now get some rest." 

As Jamar telekinetically rips himself from the ground, Sammi walk up to him. 

"I can smell both Storm and Ice man on you, and I can feel what you have done... I think you shall apologize to both of them, that was not nice." 

**Admiral**

**_~Medlab~_**

Amanda slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the man she loved. His smiled was a mixture of relief and happiness. She could sense his love for her. HE really loves me, she thought. 

(That wasn't too smart, was it.) She telepathically said to Charles. 

(I am surprised that you would want to use your powers so soon after what just happened.) Charles stated with concern. 

(Well, I figured I might as well jump up back on that horse. Besides, I could sense some hostilities from my team. It has a tendency to catch my attention.) She replied. 

(I'm sure they will resolve it on their own You need to rest.) Charles urged. 

(That's what the dragons said.) Amanda stated. 

(Smart dragons.) Charles replied, with a hint of a smile. 

(They certainly are. You all saved me....or did I do that myself.... it's all confusing.) Amanda said. 

(Amanda, I 've never been more afraid in my life. Don't do that again.) Charles said, his expression one of concern and fear. 

Amanda smiled and kissed him. Charles returned the kiss and held her as if he was afraid that someone would steal her away. 

"Well, I know a certain fearless leader who will be interested in hearing how his beloved mentor is fooling around at such an important time." recited Beast. 

Charles and Amanda just smiled. Beast, who figured out that he was a third wheel, decide that now was the time to go talk to Scott. 

Charles asked a questioned that was on his mind. (Amanda, about the dragons?) 

(Ask Jonas. In fact I'll call him..... Jonas, Cara, Sammi, and Jamar.... get back here now.....Don't disobey this order Jamar, I'm not in the mood.) Amanda telepathically ordered her team. 

Charles smiled, (That was forceful.) 

(I learned from the master.) Amanda smiled back. 

**A.C.**

**_~Southern Sector~_**

Sammi looked at everyone after they got Amanda's message. She looked at Jamar and then Jonas and said,"Remember, We fight Sinister. Not each other. Now, Our Fearless Leader calls and I can tell by her voice that we should probably be there like yesterday." 

Jamar and Jonas just looked at each other and said, "Later." 

All of them headed back to the medlab, as they were walking Sammi fell into step with Jamar and said,"You both have to deal with this before we go after Sinister. After we talk to Amanda, I am ordering you both into the Danger Room and I think Amanda would agree with me on this, It has to be resolved before we leave. Got it?" 

Jamar stopped and looked at Sammi and said, "No threats of bodily harm. What's up?" 

Sammi looked at him and said,"We're a team. And to be a team means that Everyone has to work together and if having you and Jonas battle it out is the only way to do that then, it has to be done." She gave Jamar a hug and whispered in his ear, "After you are done, talk to Cara. Also If you hurt Jonas too much, I'll hurt you, and the same goes for him. Deal?" 

"Deal." Jamar said. And they continued walking to the medlab. 

Jonas pulled her over to the side as they entered the kitchen and gave her a kiss. 

She looked at him questioningly, "What was that for?" 

"For being understanding about me and Jamar." He said. 

"I figured we need to be whole to go up against Sinister, and you two bickering isn't gonna make that happen. Like I told him, after we talk to Amanda, Both of you are to be in the danger room and get this over with. Also, I told him this too, If you hurt him too much, I'll hurt you. Got that, dragon?" She said with a smile. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara ran through the darkness...her emotions were in turmoil. How could so many things have gone wrong? It wasn't supposed to be like this! 

Cara ran through the forest, not knowing where she was going...She came out the other side, and found herself once again on top of the cliff. In the glistening moonlight, Cara could see the angry waves crashing below...they matched the storm of emotions that were brewing in her. 

Cara fell to her knees, her heart torn in two...she threw back her head and cried into the night... but no one was there to hear...or was there? 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

A familiar silvery voice that Cara heard once before, softly spoke in her mind. 

~There there, little one, I am here. If Jamar is to be the one you end up with, then it will happen. Right now, your leader needs you.~ 

Cara felt unseen arms envelop her in a hug. Cara sighed, stood up, then walked through the forest back to the mansion. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara arrived in the medlab at the same time as Sammi, Jonas and...Jamar. She couldn't look at him. It hurt her too much...she turned off her empathic powers, because she figured he probably hated her. 

She sighed. No matter how much it had hurt to tell him no, she knew that the alternative would have hurt her more. She just hoped he would understand that in time. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi, Jamar, Jonas, and Cara walked into the lab to see Amanda back on her feet, much to the annoyance of Charles. From what they could hear, it sound like Charles wanted Amanda to rest but she wasn't having anything to do with it. Jonas alone could hear both dragons echoing Charles's advice and getting the same reply from Amanda. The foursome tried not to laugh as they approached. 

(I wouldn't laugh too hard, Jonas. I told Xavier that you were going to explain why I have two dragons in my head.) Jonas heard in his mind. 

Jonas smiled at Amanda's tone for it seem to have a lightheartedness that had been missing for a while. Jonas thought that the only times he had seen her this calm was with Xavier. He was glad that she found some happiness with him, just as he had with Sammi. 

(Thanks, Jonas. I am happy, and if it wasn't for you guys I probably wouldn't be here for it. You guys put yourselves on the line for me. Thanks.) 

(What are friends for. Besides, I still want the dirt on you and Xavier.) Jonas teased. 

He heard Amanda laugh as she replied, (Only if you care to tell me why Wolverine was about to hand you your heart on a sliver platter.) 

Jonas smiled as he looked at Sammi. She smiled at him trying to figure out what was going on in his dragon mind. Though she knew that Jonas loved only her, she didn't understand this new connection with Amanda. She just shrugged it off as be some type of dragon kinship. 

(Would you like to tell me what is going on with you and Jamar, Jonas?) Amanda queried. 

(Back into fearless leader mode.) Jonas chided. 

(I have to be when the two of you decide to act like Scott and Wolverine.) Amanda replied. 

(Which one of us is Scott?) asked Jamar 

(I don't know. After you two have it out in the danger room we'll know.) Amanda answered. 

Jonas smiled, (Let me guess. The one who loses is Scott. All talk, no skill.) 

Jamar smiled as he got into it, (No. The one who goes jungle like is Wolverine. All skill, no brains.) 

(I'm glad that you two are enjoying this little bagging on the X-men, but you wouldn't live long if they heard you.) Amanda said. 

At that moment, both X-men walked in and were greeted by laughter from the three and confused stares from everyone else. Wolverine turned to Scott questioningly, while Scott just shrugged. He was getting use to it. 

**A.C.**

Jonas smiled. Jamar was powerful, insubordinate, and he was not much of a team player... not really strange... having an ensemble of personalities in one's head could drive any one to that. 

But they had to work as a team, And he knew that Jamar would be important in the upcoming battle. Everyone was important, he could feel it. 

Now with Thanagar's complete wisdom, he knew exactly the importance of following orders and he also knew a good leader when he saw one, Amanda was one. 

It felt good to know that she had Thanagar to help her get over her fear. 

He glanced at Jamar, he looked so damn secure about himself... but was it all an act? But he would never underestimate him. 

"Jonas, would you now care to explain the Dragon situation?" Xavier asked. 

He snapped back and looked at Xavier and even as he started to explain the complex story about the Dragons, having Azmaru correcting him... his mind didn't stop his tactical assessment of Jamar. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

After Jonas had finished his explanation, Xavier, Sammi, Jamar, Cara, Logan and Scott looked like they thought Jonas was completely mad. 

Amanda found it somewhat simplified... the whole situation was more complex but this was not the right moment to bring it up... Scott's head looked like it was about to explode. 

Thanagar was laughing so hard in her head that she thought that she would get a headache... 

**Admiral**

**_~Later that Evening~_**

Teb was walking down a city street with her backpack slung over her shoulder as usual. On the other side of the street, the boys stood around in a circle. Teb sighed. Those boys were caught in the harsh chains of urban life. They were only hurting themselves. She kept on walking. This was her neighborhood. They wouldn't mess with her. 

"Teb!" 

Teb looked down the street. Angelo was on the corner waving his arms. 

"Teb!" he called. 

"Hey Ange!" Teb called out to her boyfriend. She smiled. Her boyfriend. She loved her boyfriend. 

Ange held out his arms waiting for a hug. Teb smiled and started to jog down the street to him. Ange smiled at her and Teb smiled back. 

~Geez, this is a long block,~ thought Teb as she ran to Angelo. A car started to pull up behind Angelo. It was going slow 

~Oh no...~ Teb thought. 

It was happening in slow motion. The car pulled up to the corner and she saw the gun. 

"ANGE, GET DOWN!!!" she screamed. 

Ange just stood there waiting for his hug. 

"ANGE!!!" she screamed again. 

He seemed like he couldn't hear her. 

"ANGE!!!" 

the three shots rang through Teb's ears. 

"NOOOO ANGELO!!" 

Angelo's body racked with the force of the bullets as he slowly fell to the ground. Before he fell down, Teb looked into his eyes. 

"ANGE!!!" 

"ANGE NO!!" 

"NO!" 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb woke up screaming. Ange was shaking her to wake her up. Teb looked up at his worried eyes. It was a dream. Just a dream. 

"Teb, Teb, it's ok... it's ok..." Ange said as Teb was trying to control herself. She didn't know whether to cry or be happy. 

"Take deep breaths chica, calm down." Ange said. 

Teb inhaled deep and exhaled slowly to even out her breathing. 

"Oh Ange..." she said and threw her arms around him. 

"Shhhh, chica... it's alright, it was just a dream. it's ok." he soothed. 

"I thought they got you too Ange, I thought they got you too." 

"I'm fine Teb, it's ok." Ange said and rubbed circles on her back. Teb seemed to calm and her heart rate slowed. 

"I'm ok now, Ange." Teb said and pushed off Angelo. "I just need to get something to drink." she got off the bed and started to the door. 

"Let me get you something." Ange asked with nothing but concern in his eyes. 

"No, I'm fine Ange. Go back to sleep." she said and looked back at those worried eyes ."Really Ange..." she put on a fake smile, "I'll be fine." 

Ange bought the smile and Teb slipped out of the room and closed the door. 

Teb went into the bathroom washed her face with cold water, and dried off. she looked at her reflection in the mirror. 

"It was fake." she whispered to herself over and over again. she closed her eyes. she figured a cold shower would snap her out of it. After she had relaxed, she shut off the shower and stepped out . 

Ange's bloody body was standing there. Teb shrieked. 

"It's all your fault teb." said Ange's bloody mouth. 

"no..." Teb whispered to herself. "it's not real..." 

"I said it's all your fault, b****!" Ange said again. 

"This can't be happening..." Teb said and backed off as Ange approached her. 

"You got close to me 'chica'." he said the word with so much bitterness. 

"No, no, no..." Teb repeated over and over again. 

"You got close to me and now I'm dead and it's all your fault." 

Teb couldn't help herself but to cry now. 

"It's your fault..." he paused "You're getting close to your team now aren't you Teb?" he asked with such evil in his voice. 

Teb looked up shocked. It was true. She was alot less antisocial now than when she first came here. She considered her teammates trusted friends. 

"They're all gonna die Teb." Ange said and got closer to her. He got right into her face. She could smell the blood "and it's all your fault..." he said and smiled and pointed to the bathroom mirror. Teb looked to see a face morphing through the faces of vision x. they were screaming and calling for help. 

"It's your fault Teb." 

"No..." Teb said louder. 

"They're gonna die tomorrow and you won't be able to help them." 

"NO!" Teb yelled as she looked at the helpless faces of her team, her friends crying for her to help them. 

"It's because of you they're dying, you got close to them... it's your fault." 

"NO!!!" Teb screamed and punched the glass with the palm of her hand (not turned into metal). 

The glass shattered and Teb looked around. Angelo was gone, and she was sitting there crying with shards of glass in her hand. 

"It's all my fault!" Teb cried and fell to the floor. Someone was pounding on the door but she couldn't hear them. She couldn't hear anything but the cry of her friends calling out to her to save them. 

**teb**


	28. Reality Bites-Part 28

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 28

**

Jonas slammed his fist into the door again... "TEB? Are you ok?" he shouted. 

He had heard every word, it was as if she was talking to someone... but there was no one in there with her. He snapped; it could be Anon! 

Girls bathroom or not, he was not about to let Anon kill anyone else. 

He grabbed the door and pulled it off by the doorframe... he saw Teb, she was on the floor bleeding heavily from her hand, and she had the most terrified expression on her face. 

"TEB!!!" he grabbed one of the towels off the wall and started to wrap her hand up in it. He saw that she had cut herself bad, and was bleeding way too fast. 

He quickly put pressure on the wound and picked her up. She struggled at first, babbling something about it being her fault... but he didn't care. She had to get to the medlab before she bled to death. 

/SAMMI! MEDLAB! Teb is cut bad./ he telepathically screamed to Sammi. 

Jonas ran to the Medlab. 

"Everyone will die, and it's my fault." Teb said as she struggled with Jonas's iron grip. 

"Teb... you listen to me, and you listen good, none of us are going to die, and nothing is your fault." 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb had the look of complete shock as she sat on the medlab bed. Jonas shuddered, they seemed to end up here all the time. 

"Hank, I have only gotten the two large pieces out... but there have to be more." Reyes said and looked over Teb's hand and wrist. 

"Damn mirror Glass, I can't find anything." She said and dried some of the sweat off her face. 

Angelo was holding Teb's other, hand whispering that it would be ok into her ear. 

Jonas moved closer. "Hank, Reyes? May I try something?" he said. "I'm not sure if this will work, but I can see that it might." 

"Well..." Reyes said and looked at Hank. "The longer they stay in there the more those small shards can damage... ok, go ahead. But be careful." 

Jonas walked up and but his hand over the wounds, tapping into his powers. Glass was in a way melted sand, a part of earth, therefore partially under his control. 

Teb jerked, and tried to move her hand away, her arm felt like it was burning. "Sorry Teb, but we need to get them out, before any of the small pieces get into your bloodstream." 

Teb clenched her teeth as Jonas Magically Grabbed all the small pieces of glass, knowing that what he was going to do was about to be painful, he held her arm with his other hand. 

"Sorry Teb..." Jonas yanked out the small pieces of glass from her hand... even if Teb had been given an anesthetic this was probably extremely painful, but Teb bit down and said nothing. 

Reyes looked shocked as Jonas let the glass fall on to the container with the others that she and Hank had pulled out before. Jonas looked sad, nothing hurt him more then stuff like this. 

**Admiral**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Amanda sat in the middle of her room, quietly meditating. She wanted to focus her thoughts so she would be prepared for the battle ahead. She needed to be sharp and prepared for anything. She was worried about Teb, but she knew that Jonas and Hank would take care of her. 

Jonas and Jamar had set aside their differences for now, which was good. Right now she needed a team that could work together. They were probably arguing over which one was Scott. Amanda could feel the tension of the X-men. They didn't want Vision X going out on this mission alone. 

Ryan and Maria had talked Sabertooth into taking them to get ice cream. Amanda figured Maria had thought that it would prevent trouble. Cable went with them and she only hoped that Victor and Cable hadn't killed each other. 

(Your thoughts are troubled, fair lady.) Stated Azmaru. 

(I know. The meditation isn't helping.) Amanda answered. 

(Perhaps if you had more faith in the team's and your abilities, you may relax.) advised Thanagar. 

(Your accent's fading a little.) Amanda stated. 

(Our connection is growing stronger and we are drawing on each other skills and traits.) Explained Azmaru. 

(Do you love this Xavier?) asked Thanagar. 

(I think you know the answer, and I didn't like the threat. I can understand the protectiveness, but please avoid threatening my boyfriend.) 

(I think the lady is getting more boldness in her. Me thinks this battle has put a fighting spirit in the lass) commented Azmaru as he took on Thanagar expression at Amanda blatant warning. 

(Yes, me thinks the lass is learning to stand up for herself.) Thanagar muttered. 

Amanda smiled as she replied, (Thank you for all you've done for me. I only hope I will make you proud. I hope my warrior spirit is equal to both of yours.) 

(It will be lass.) replied Thanagar. 

(I could use your guidance and wisdom in determining a strategy for facing Anon. I have a feeling me and the witch will have another battle and I am determined to win.) Amanda declared. 

Thanagar was pleased by her boldness and determination. To him, they were sides of a great leader and warrior. 

(Aye lass, we will do just that.) Thanagar replied as he, Azmaru, and Amanda planned their next move. 

**A.C.**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi ran to the medlab and found Teb, Jonas and Angelo. After she caught some of Teb's thoughts, she knew who was behind them and she was talking to Jonas about them in the kitchen. 

"Anon, did it. Teb was just a pawn in their sick, twisted plan." She explained. 

"But why?" Jonas asked taking her hand. He knew that even mentioning her name reminded Sammi of what she did to him. 

"That's the easy answer. They're both afraid of us. That's why they keep attacking us, in our dreams. It's when we are the most vulnerable. The hard question is, How do we stop it? No one has any answers." She said shaking her head. 

She squeezed his hand and said,"Thanks." 

She got up and gave him a kiss and said, "I'm going to take a shower and try to get some sleep. Don't fight with Jamar too long... you both need to be rested for the real fight." 

Sammi turned and walked upstairs. She opened the door to her room and quickly walked in. She shut the door and fell against it and slid to the floor crying. When she finally stopped crying she said,"Anon, you B***h, I'm going to make you pay for hurting my friends." 

She slammed her fist into the door and got up and headed for the bathroom. She didn't turn around; if she had, she would have seen the hole that she'd punched in the door. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb sat in the med lab with a bandaged up hand. It would heal in a few hours because her skin power's healing of cuts was a lot quicker then normal. 

People were trying to talk with her, but she didn't pay them any attention. Every time she looked at their faces, all she saw was them bleeding or dying, or crying out for help. 

Jonas had gotten her from the bathroom and brought her to the medlab, and got the glass from her hand. She wanted to be nice to him, to thank him, but she knew better. Even back in the real world, everyone she got close to was either dead, injured, or in jail. 

"And it's all my fault." she mumbled to herself. 

Angelo was sitting next to her. He held her hand, but she didn't try and hold it back. She just sat there and stared out into space. 

Once Teb finally started to doze, Angelo put his head in his hands and prayed that Teb would be fine... that Vision X would be fine... that he would be fine. 

Ange couldn't believe that only a few hours ago they were madly in love, and now she was doing anything in her power to keep him away from her. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Anon laughed. This triumph was making her feel better. Not only was she hurting Teb, she was hurting her teammates and lover too. 

**teb**

**_

~*~Sammi~*~

_**

She was in a car. There were two people in the front and she was in the back. As soon as she saw the upholstery, she knew where she was. She was in her parents car, and they were in the front seats. She looked down and saw the box with the brand new Cabbage Patch Kid in it, and immediately she knew when she was also. It was the night of her parents death. She was living it all over again. 

As she was crouched behind her father's seat, she saw her mother's head turn. But this time instead of holding out her hand, she said, "It all your fault. If you didn't get all A's, We wouldn't have been coming home from buying you that. It's your fault, Samantha. It's all your fault. You're the one that killed us. You ungrateful little witch." 

Sammi stared horrified at her mother's face. There was no caring, there was only hate. Hate for her. She ducked her head into her hands and kept saying,"I'm sorry." 

Sammi picked her head up and saw that she was no longer in the car. She was now in her room at Michelle and Ryan's. She was sitting on her bed holding her knees to her chest. Sammi looked at the door as she saw it open. Standing in the doorway was a thirteen year old Jamar. His face had an expression of pure hate, just like when Kyle tried to kill her the first time. 

"It's all your fault, Sammi. It's all your fault. If we didn't get close, they wouldn't have sent me away. Everyone you get close to has to go away. You don't deserve happiness. You never have and you never will. That's why you must die." He said the last part as he charged her. 

She looked at the hand he now extended over his head, and there was a huge knife in it. She dropped her head again and just cried, she couldn't say anything. 

Sammi opened her eyes again to see that she was now outside. She heard crying and looked down and saw Rogue holding a body, rocking and crying. She looked at the body and it wasn't just a body. It was Jonas, and he was dead. 

"Jonas?" She said in a small voice. Rogue's head snapped up and her eyes held nothing but hate as she looked at Sammi. 

"Don't ya even say his name. He died because of you. Your father killed him because he was foolish enough to love you. A worthless, piece of trash, that hurts anyone who you come in contact with. Look, you killed your own father!" Rogue screamed at her. 

She pointed over towards another body that was lying on the ground, with another person leaning over it. As if on cue, the person leaning over the body stood up and faced her. It was Sabertooth. He had blood running down his chin and was smiling his feral, toothy grin. She looked down at the body and saw that it was her father. Her real father, Logan. He was bleeding heavily from his neck, and his eyes were looking at her. 

"Thanks, frail. I've been trying to get the runt, and you led me right to him. It was so easy. I would suggest that we team up, but you kill everyone you come in contact with." Sabertooth said. 

But Sammi's eyes were glued to the body of her father. She started shaking her head and backing away. 

"Get away from him, trash!" Rogue yelled. 

Sammi turned her head and saw Jonas's body, and looked back at Logan's and started crying. She turned and ran into the woods. As she ran, she heard their voices yelling at her. When she reached the cliff, she turned to see that her parents's bloody bodies, along with Jonas's and Logan's were standing there. Jamar walked around them to stand in front of them. 

"You need to die before you hurt anyone else." He charged her and she stumbled over the cliff. 

As she fell she screamed. "NO!!!!!! JONAS!!!!!!!!" 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sammi continued to fall til she landed on something hard with a sickeningly thud. She slowly got up to find herself in a lab type warehouse. She looked around and saw Vision X and the X-Men all standing around her. She couldn't move or talk. 

"Now... do you want to see the future?" A voice said from the shadows. A figure emerged. It was wearing a long cloak and had a mask covering its face. 

Sammi wanted to scream, but she couldn't. The figure walked closer to her. 

"Look at them. All of them hate you. They don't think you deserve to live. Don't you want to hurt them as much as they hurt you?" 

A tear slid down Sammi's face, as her arms started to rise. She couldn't stop them. She stared in horror as she saw the blast leave her fingers. She saw everyone's bodies start to burn, and they were screaming. She couldn't move. She tried to close her eyes but the figure said, "I wouldn't. You'll miss all of the fun." 

When the final team member fell, burnt to a crisp, she could finally move. Sammi turned to the figure and the figure said,"That was good wasn't it?" 

Sammi just stared. Finally she said,"It all my fault. I killed them." 

The figure smiled. But the smile was short lived as she saw Sammi unleash one of her claws on each hand, and quickly run it across her wrists... but nothing happened. Sammi's claws turned into rubber. The figure took another step towards her. 

"Now, we can't have you do that. Father has great plans for you, Sister." 

"NNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!" Sammi yelled as she fell to her knees crying. 

**_

~Sinister's Lair~

_**

Anon smiled. That was the best one yet. She finally broke Sammi, and now Father's plans would be complete. With Sammi, The death of the X-Men would be at hand. Sammi's hand, that is. She grinned evilly. 

**jubilee_79**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

After a lengthy lecture from Storm, Jamar walks down the stairs feeling better about coming clean. 

/They weren't too mad about the whole mind trick thing, but waking them up again really pissed 'em off./ he thought. 

"Now comes the hard part." Jamar says as he walks down the hallway. 

Jamar had been standing in front of the door to Cara's room for the past few minutes and still hadn't figured out what to say. The nervous energy and self-loathing was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Inside the room Cara sat on the bed going through the same feelings, until the emotional hailstorm slips through a crack in her senses, and she looks up beginning to catch the thoughts coming from the other side of the door. 

/...she's probably pissed at me. She might not even be here. Just knock on the door idiot./ 

He raises his hand to knock, but the door eases open. He slowly lowers his hand as he looks into Cara's eyes. 

/Man she's beautiful./ 

The dam bursts as his thoughts and feelings come rushing into Cara. No words are exchanged as she reaches up and takes his hand in hers and gives it a squeeze. He kisses her hand and gives her a hug. The feelings she picks up speak volumes as he walks away but not before leaving a mental impression. 

/We'll talk later Jamar. Please be careful, and don't hurt Jonas/ Cara says. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

/Well it's time to settle the score./ Jamar thinks to himself. 

**Hey Dragonboy... you ready to play or what!?** Jamar telepathically shouts at Jonas. 

/Anytime you're ready Yoda./ 

**I'll see you in the Danger Room in an hour.** 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Jonas stands in the center of the empty Danger Room in his semi-dragon form. /Where is he?/ 

"If he's not here in another ten minutes I guess we can call it forfeit..." he says to Cyke and Wolverine. Amanda had insisted on those two being there to make sure no one got hurt or killed. 

The door opens and Jamar walks in, clad in a black spandex battle suit and hooded robe. Jonas cannot pass up the opportunity to cut down his opponent. 

"Nice outfit Jedi wannabe... but where's your lightsaber?" As the words leave Jonas mouth he is sorry he said them as a bladed staff made of fire appears from Jamar's hands, and he takes up a stance that is slightly familiar somehow... then it occurs to him. 

"Wolverine... by any chance did Jamar...uh mind meld or something with you?" Wolverine only smiles as Jamar bows to his opponent. 

"Don't worry so much Dragonboy, since I was late you can choose the location of our...uh..grudge match." 

**Chaos**

**_

~Cara's Room~

_**

After Jamar left, Cara closed the door. She smiled...she was glad that he didn't blow her off... she really did like him. Cara was a little tense, so she walked to the middle of the room, and sat down. She began using the meditating techniques that Wolverine had taught her after Arac had...well, she didn't want to think of that. 

Cara closed her eyes, forced all thoughts out of her mind, and concentrated until she could hear her own heartbeat. 

~thump, thump.~ ~thump, thump.~ Listen to it's rythm. Breathe in, Breathe out. Breath in, Breathe out. Nice and slow. Concentrate, focus all thoughts on the heartbeat. Push out all thoughts of grief and pain. Breathe. 

A silvery laugh chimes in Cara's mind, interrupting Cara's meditation. 

/What are you up to, Anon?/ Cara calmly thinks towards the witch, without opening her eyes. 

~If you weren't connected to my sister, you would know that first hand little one.~ the silver voice speaks into Cara's mind. 

/What do you mean, Anon?/ Cara asks, a sudden chill coming over her. She could almost feel Anon's evil smile as she replied. 

~My sister has taken you under her wing...because of that, I cannot influence you using YOUR nightmares. However, I can hurt you by showing you the nightmares of the others. And I take a great deal of satisfaction in knowing you will not be able to help them, either in their nightmares, or in real life. You are weakened from our last battle. Therefore, there is nothing you can do to break my hold on your friends.~ 

Cara's eyes opened in shock...she had dimmed her empathic powers, and had neglected to turn them back on fully after she and Jamar made up. She reached out now towards her friends. 

She gasped as the full force of her friends misery crashed into her...wave after wave of pure despair hit her, drowned her, left her writhing on the floor in pure agony. 

/Anon, what have you done?/ she cried out...it hurt too much to breathe. 

The evil silvery laugh once again chimed in Cara's mind. 

~You really want to know? Open your mind to me Cara, and I will show you.~ Anon said. 

Cara opened her mind...willingly. She decided that to truely help her friends, she would have to know their pain first hand...then, if they all survived this ordeal, she would use her knowledge to help heal her friends. She hoped they would survive. 

/Please hang on my friends...do not let Anon win. Together, we can make it through anything. Please, hang on./ she thought. 

Cara rolled up into a little ball on the floor...her eyes were wide open, but she didn't see anything that was in front of her. Her entire mind was focused on the visions in her mind, watching as her friends went through the hardest moments of their life, only increased and worsened by Anon; a careful mixture of truth and fiction, real life events and illusion. The worst kind of lie. Tears ran down Cara's pale face, as the pain overwhelmed her. 

/Surely this will be the end of Cara...she's been a thorn in my side since day one...she's the only one who has ever seen me, the only one who knows what I used to be and what I have now become./ Anon thought to herself. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~Danger Room~

_**

Jonas smiled, Jamar sure was sure of himself... and he could even feel how powerful he had become. 

"A big forest, A lake connected by rivers... that won't be a problem Cyke?" Jonas asked. 

Scott nodded and the room changed into the setting. By the time it was complete, Jonas's face turned utterly serious... all of his human facial features was gone. 

Jonas bowed down exposing his neck, the traditional Bow of Dragons. Cyke and Wolverine rested against a tree. 

"Ya brought popcorn." Logan asked and could only smile as Cyke held up a bag to him. 

"Let's see Logan, how your son-in-law can handle himself." Cyke ginned, knowing that Logan didn't like that fact. 

Jonas slowly raised his head... his face frowned and his eyes opened and a split second later Jonas roared at the top of his lungs, forcing all the air out of his chest with a force that would have single handedly knocked over a small car. Jamar only blinked... his robe was gone. 

The Dragon grinned, and they started to circle each other... Jamar tried to grab Jonas mind but it was shut tight, and nothing was getting in there. 

This was going to be about physical powers, Jamar smiled... he was going to knock that grin of his face. 

But who was going to make the first move... 

Jamar was growing inpatient. They had circle each other for a time now, and Jamar decided that it was time to make a move. 

Jamar raised his hand and unleashed a Telekinetic attack, throwing Jonas in behind some trees. Jamar smiled... it was not a powerful attack, but it was the first move. 

But Jonas didn't come back, and Jamar was left standing in the clearing... it was not tactically a correct place, and he knew it, but to rush into the woods was not that good an idea either... 

Suddenly, something tugged at his leg. Jamar looked down, surprised at an earth statue of Yoda, smiling up at him... Jamar frowned as he heard a roar. 

/That was stupid Jamar, just got distracted.../ he thought to himself. 

The next second, Jonas and Jamar were caught up in a fight. Jamar hitting/slashing with his *lightsaber*, Jonas blocking with his arms and hands, his expression blank. 

Jonas was seemingly on the defensive as Jamar pushed his attack and threw a hand full of ice shard's. Using his TK, he make a jump over Jonas, ready to slash him over the back. 

"Don't get too fancy, Jamar." Jonas grabbed him by the ankle and threw him deep into the Forest... 

Being quick on his feet, Jonas was over him with a roar and pinned down his arms. 

Jamar smiled up at him. "You're fast..." he said, and then unleashed his TK to push Jonas up in the air. 

He landed a bit away from Jamar. They were not pushing very hard, both afraid to hurt. 

The fight went on... Jamar pushing his Tk to the limit, using his fire staff and ice to try and disorient Jonas, to keep him of balance... Jonas using his strength and invulnerability. 

Logan and Scott watched the fight, wondering when someone would start to REALLY fight. 

After an another minute of fighting, Jamar started to get tired of this dance and decided to try and end the fight... 

Pushing his TK to the limit, he grabbed Jonas and slammed him into the ground, hard. 

Jamar TK-lifted himself off of the ground, smiling. 

"Do you surrender?" he asked, looking at the 12 foot monster that he had pinned to the ground. 

Jonas first relaxed and then tightened his body, fighting against Jamar's TK. 

Surprised at the strain that was brought back into him from Jonas, Jamar got back to the ground to hold Jonas more powerfully, but Jonas gave no time for him to rest. 

Jonas pushed a little more, and Jamar staggered slightly under the stress and clenched his teeth. He tried to get a new TK grip, but every time he tried, Jonas pushed a little more. 

Jamar walked over and placed his sword on Jonas neck. "Give up, you have lost. You can't break my grip before I run this through your neck." Jamar said through clenched teeth. 

Jonas turned his Dragon face into a smile, and the flame on the staff died. At this moment of surprise Jonas ripped through the TK, and Jamar felt the stress of the TK breaking as he lost his concentration. 

He fell... Jonas grabbed him by the neck and he looked at him. Jonas had changed back into his human form. 

"You are truly powerful, but you are too damn sure of yourself, I could...." Jonas stopped. 

/NO!!!!!!Jonas!!!!!!!!/ Sammi's voice Screamed in his mind and he froze. 

Jamar took the opportunity to break free from the grasp, and used all his power to strike at Jonas... 

"Not so tuff now are..." Jamar yelled angrily. But again Jonas grabbed him, this time by his uniform. 

"Learn something human! Know you're prey before you attack in that way." Jonas threw Jamar in Logan's and Scott's direction. 

/NNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!"/ He can hear Sammi scream in his mind as Logan helped Jamar to his feet. 

Jonas ran for the door and through it, not bothering to open it. 

**Admiral**

**_

~Mansion Roof~

_**

Ryan sat on the roof of the mansion. She didn't want to try to sleep anymore; the dreams were really starting to get to her. At this moment she just wanted to be alone. She wouldn't get that pleasure though. 

"Is this seat taken?" Maria's small voice came out of nowhere. Ryan thought of how much of a blessing being invisible would be. If you didn't want to be found, you weren't. 

"No, you're free to join... but I don't think I would be very good company." Ryan said trying to throw a smile towards Maria. 

"You don't look so good. Are you ok?" Maria asked. She could tell that something was bothering Ryan, but didn't want to pry into her problems. She began to wonder if Sabretooth had hurt her in any way. 

"I'm just tired. I haven't been able to sleep; I have been having some nightmares lately." Ryan answered. 

"I hope they aren't like the one Teb had." Maria stated. 

"What happened?" Ryan asked. 

"I'm not sure, but she punched a mirror in the bathroom because of it." Maria replied. 

Ryan's face fell as she thought about another one of her friends getting hurt. "Maria, I don't think it is safe for you to be around me." 

**Le Fae**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb had another dream. 

She was sitting at her dining room table. Her mother was running around the kitchen baking presents for her brothers girlfriends Christmas gifts. Teb sat and waited for her mother to fill the tins, so she could have some of the leftover ones. She watched her mother put every last cookie in the tins, and send her brothers on their way to their girlfriends houses for Christmas dinner. She watched her mom clean up and go to bed. She looked over at her dad. 

"We're not having dinner?" she asked. 

He looked over at her with chicken grease on his face from the chicken he was eating. "Your brothers weren't going to be here, so why bother?" he asked, and returned to watching tv. 

Teb's dream turned into another occasion. She was sitting in a jail cell waiting for her parents to pick her up. She had been busted for destruction of private property. she waited for hours and hours for them to come. Finally, one of her friends mothers brought her home when she went to pick up her son. Teb walked up to the house and walked in. Her parents were sitting down for a nice family dinner with her brothers. 

"Sorry Teb... I didn't know you were coming. I'm afraid there's not enough for you." her mother said, as her brothers finished their college stories they were telling. 

Teb walked up to her room and saw Angelo sitting on her bed. 

"Ange!" she said, and ran to him to give him a hug. 

He hugged her back and kissed the top of her head. 

"Teb..." 

Teb pulled back and looked at his now corpse-like face, "It's all your fault..." 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Teb woke up with a start and looked at Ange next to her, asleep in his chair. She got up and walked outside. She grabbed a paint can that was still on the ground next to the wall and scribbled it all over her piece from the day before. 

"What do you think you're doing?" Storm asked, and glared at her and the paint can in her hand. 

"What are you, my mother?" Teb asked, and got in Storm's face. 

"Excuse me child? Clean up this mess." 

"Clean it up yourself." Teb threw down her can and walked away. 

"Get back here this instant!" Storm yelled after Teb, but Teb ignored her. 

Teb walked into the kitchen and grabbed a 6 pack from the fridge, and went to her room to wallow in her own self pity. 

**teb**

**_

~Ryan and Sabretooth's Room~

_**

Sabertooth shifted in bed...his breathing had become stilted, erratic. The others had told him about the nightmares coming from Anon, but he'd gone to sleep anyway. There wasn't anything that he was afraid of that could be used against him...or so he thought. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

He was walking down the hallway of the mansion, looking for Ryan. He heard her laughing, she sounded so happy and he wanted to be there with her. He followed her scent to a closed door...that's when he noticed, the scent of a man was with hers. Sabertooth growled and burst in the door. 

He had tried to prepare himself for this eventuality...but nothing he had done prepared him for what he saw. Sabertooth's eyes grew wide and his face pale with shock as he took in the scene before him... 

"NO, RYAN!!! HOW COULD YOU!!!" he roared. 

Ryan sat up in bed, and said, "Because I love him. Honestly, did you actually think that I could love a filthy, disgusting thing like you? Hey, at least HE'S cute!" 

Wolverine also sat up in bed, leaned over and nibbled Ryan on the neck. "Yah, Sabey, did you really think that she could love a filthy thing like you?" he said as he put one arm possessively around Ryan. 

Sabertooth's face turned red and his eyes narrowed into slits. He had given Ryan everything he had, and she threw it back in his face like this... she was going to pay... she was really going to pay. 

Sabertooth roared, and grabbed for Ryan. Wolverine jumped out of bed, popped his claws and advanced on Sabertooth. Sabertooth tore his claws into Wolverine, and sliced him open from throat to belly. He didn't even break a sweat when he threw Wolverine's dead body through the closed door. 

He turned back to Ryan, who lay pale and shaking, with the covers pulled up around her neck. Sabertooth snarled and advanced on her. He grabbed her by the throat and yanked her out of bed, holding her up off of the ground. 

"I trusted you." he said to the pale, painfilled face. Sabertooth's heart was breaking... he had loved her with all that he had, and she had treated him like this. 

"Sabey, I'm sorry, I won't do it again...I..." her pleas were cut off as Sabertooth broke her neck...he held her close as the life drained out of her body. 

For the first time in a long time, Sabertooth felt like crying. He sat on the bed, still holding the lifeless Ryan... his body wracked with sobs. 

"HEY!!!" came an angry shout from the hallway. 

Sabertooth looked up... to see an angry Cara standing in the doorway. 

"What do you want, frail..." he snarled at the girl. 

"You just killed my friend and the Father of my other friend, and you have the gall to ask me what I WANT?! I want to kill you...you b******!!! AND DON'T CALL ME FRAIL!!!" Cara shouted, as she let loose her pink fire blast, straight at Sabertooth. 

Sabertooth didn't even try to get out of the way...he knew this day would come. His eyes were calm as he blew up into a million pieces. 

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

Sabertooth woke up to find that Ryan was not in bed. 

/NO! She wouldn't, would she?/ he thought with fear. 

**Rainfall**

**_

~*~*~*~*~*~

_**

"Sammi?" Jonas screamed as he entered their room. 

"Don't come close... I don't wanna hurt you... please go away." Sammi said. 

"Take your own advice... I'm not about to leave, and I don't think there is any way you could make me." Jonas said daring and walked over to Sammi. It was dark in the room, Sammi was huddled away in the corner. 

"Sammi... Talk to me, don't leave me in the dark like this, I can feel that something is wrong." Jonas moved down to kneel in front of her. 

Sammi said nothing. 

"PLEASE!!! Don't block me out..." Jonas moved his hand over to her shoulder. Sammi noticed and jumped to the side. 

"No get away!" Sammi curled up to the wall, she didn't want to hurt him but she could feel it building inside of her, not exactly what but something was wrong. 

"Sammi... what happened, tell me." Jonas tried and moved closer. 

"Why don't you listen to me, you will die if you stay around me." Sammi said in a small voice so different from the woman he loved, almost as if she was a small child. 

Jonas started to get angry, someone was doing this to her... had she not suffered enough already... 

"Is this Anon? Is she messing with you to?" Jonas Grabbed Sammi before she could pull away again. Sammi screamed and started to fight him, trying to get out from his grip. What was wrong with her? 

He maneuvered around and embraced her in a strong hug until she stopped fighting him... "Please Sammi, don't do this to me... we are both in this together, I can't... I can't do this without you." 

Sammi bowed her head down and sobbed slightly. "I killed you all, it's my fault... you will all die and it's my fault." 

"Listen to me... am I dead?" Jonas kissed her on the back of her head. "I'm not going to die... not again... I promise." 

"Sammi, We have to keep this team together... if we lose the bond we all share, Sinister will walk all over us." Jonas squeezed her tight. 

"Teb is real messed up, Cara is walking the line, and Ryan don't seem to be so far from it either. We are all a pawn in his sick game... and we have to change the rules right now. If we play by his... we will lose." 

Sammi looked up at him. 

"I love you Sammi, with all my heart... help me change the rules." Jonas said. 

**Admiral**


	29. Reality Bites-Part 29

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 29

**

Sammi looked up at Jonas. At first his face was the one from the dream, but then he said,"I love you, Sammi, with all my heart...Help me change the rules." When she heard that it was like something clicked. She reached up slowly and put her hand to his cheek. She left it there as she said,"I love you, too." She leaned up and kissed him. When they broke apart, she said,"Forget change. Let's break the rules." 

"That's my girl. What happened?" Jonas asked still holding her. 

"Anon was messing with my head. She was switching my memories around to suit her sick idea of fun. But she slipped up, she was gloating. She showed me what their plans are, and I'm in the middle of them. She showed me, blasting all of you and the X-Men. I couldn't do anything to stop it. That and the part before where she showed you and my father dead, caused me to lose it." She hugged him tighter and said,"I'm sorry. I didn't want to push you away like that, but I don't want to see you or any of them hurt." 

"You have nothing to be sorry about. That B***h made you do that. She pushed you to it." He kissed her temple. 

"You know what?" Sammi asked. 

"What?" 

"Well, actually its two things. First, you know that song called 'Everything I do, I do for you', well I never knew that you could love someone that much, but I do." She looked at him. "I love you that much." 

"I love you that much too. So what's the other thing." Jonas asked. 

Sammi smiled a little and said,"We don't have any Code names. I mean, every Super Hero here has a code name except for Rogue... but if I'm a super hero, I want a code name." 

Jonas smiled at her. He knew that she was a little better, but there was something wrong that she was holding back from him. He was going to find out what it was, but not now. She had too much of a shock with that dream. "What do you want to be named?" 

"I don't know. What about you?" 

"I haven't even thought about it." 

She looked at him and smiled."I got one for you." 

"What?" He asked smiling at her mischievous smile. 

"Pookie." She said matter of factly. 

"Then I'll call you, Muffin." he couldn't hold the laugh from the look on her face. 

"Alright, fine. I'll think of another one. But don't think you're off the hook for that one, Dragon." She huffed then said, "That's it! Dragon. What do you think?" 

Jonas thought about it, it fit him so he said,"I like it. Now for you." 

Sammi kissed him and said,"Remember, I love you." She was hoping that he wouldn't come up with one, like, Super Freak or something. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jean saw Teb in the hallway with a 6 pack of beer. 

"Hold it right there." she said, and ran after Teb. 

"What the heck do you want?" Teb asked, and turned to face her. 

Jean grabbed the beer from Teb's hands and looked her right in the eye. 

"You're 16 years old, you can't have this." 

"See if I care, go drink it for yourself." Teb said, and turned to go in her room. 

"What has gotten into you?" Jean asked. 

Teb cringed... what HAS gotten into her? In her mind? Anon. That's what they were telling her before. But she couldn't risk it, she couldn't risk her friends lives. 

Jean could feel Teb's grief. "Teb...it's ok." 

Teb snapped back into reality "No, it's not..." she turned to Jean again. "It was a warning. I'm useless, and Im' gonna get them killed!" 

Jean looked at the sorrow in Teb's eyes. "She's doing it to everyone." 

Teb stopped. "Huh?" 

"Everyone is getting dreams, visions, that they're going to end up hurting the team. They're withdrawing. You can't do that. You gotta stick together. It's the only way." 

Jean could feel the relief Teb got from what she said, but the fear was still there. Jean let Teb walk away without saying anything. 

/At least she will be able to think with a clear mind.../ Jean thought as she brought the beer back to the kitchen. 

Teb decided she had had enough sleep for one night. She hopped out a window and swung herself up on to the roof. 

Ryan and Maria looked at her and she looked back at them. Without saying a word, she sat down next to them. 

"Teb are you.." Ryan started. 

"I don't want to talk..." Teb said flatly. "I just gotta....I just gotta sit here with you." 

Ryan nodded. 

Teb's hand was healed. She took off the bandages and saw the scars that were left. The scars made it look like she had tried to kill herself. Ryan put her hand on Teb's shoulder. Teb could feel it. She wanted to shrug it off. Tell Ryan where she could put her hand. Make Ryan hate her. Make her stay away. But she let Ryan keep her hand there. She let Ryan be her friend. 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Anon, extremely pleased with the havoc she has caused so far with Vision X, decides on whom her next victim will be. She can't affect Cara because of her sister's interference, so...it will be Hope. Without Hope, she will be victorious over all of them. 

Anon reaches out with her terrible mind, to give Hope the most terrible of dreams. Just as she touches Hope's mind her mind is slapped away. She reels back a little dizzy, wondering whom had the nerve to slap her. She hisses, sensing whom had stopped her. 

~~Ymela!!!! How is it possible that you can reach out this far.~~ 

~~Very simple sister... Thanks to Hope and to Sammi and others, I am able to interfere just a little bit. You leave Hope alone!! You will not hurt her, Hope is under my protection. I may not have been able to stop you from giving the others nightmares but even though they suffer from your nightmares, they will find the strength to defeat you. And my dear Anon, there is one thing that you are going to have to live with. I love you, in spite of path you are on. Return from the path you have chosen or you will suffer great consequences.~~ 

~~Bah! You do not know what you are talking about Ymela, I will win and I will destroy everyone!!~~ 

~~Remember, I warned you....~~ Ymela says calmly then she pushes Anon away from Hope very firmly. 

Anon finds herself back in Sinister's lab her head aching and feeling sick to her stomach and very angry. In a fit of rage, she reaches out and destroys one of the tables. 

**_~Medlab~_**

Hope, lying in her hospital bed, feels a presence near her. A quiet, calming, voice that only she can hear, sings a song of healing. Softly gently, unseen fingers stroke her hair, much like that of a mother soothing an child that is ill or hurt. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~Danger Room~_**

Jamar goes hurtling through the air toward Cyke and Wolverine, who just barely manage to side step the human missile. Jamar cocks his head as his momentum carries him toward a large tree at the edge of a hill. A slight TK tweak slows him just a little bit, but he cracks four of his ribs. As he coughs up blood a feral look crosses his face. In that instant, his ribs mend themselves as he synchs with Wolverine. 

"Dragon... you should not underestimate this human." 

/Calm down bro'./ Sammi says as his intentions become clear to her. 

Jamar turns obsidian, and razor sharp crystal spikes appear over his body. His arms and fingers elongate, and purple fire engulfs his body. Ripping away the burnt remains of his uniform, Jamar charges at full tilt at Jonas. 

Wolverine and Cyke run to the other side of the Danger Room as fire, ice, and lightning begin raining down around the room. The earth shoots up vines that ensnare Jamar, only to be cut or burnt by his body. 

Jamar and Jonas look over at Cyke and Wolverine, and in one great roar they echo each other. 

"LEAVE NOW!!!" 

**LEAVE NOW!!!** 

Cyke begins to protest but is cut off as purple fire surrounds him and Wolverine sending them to the Rec Room. 

"What the...?" 

"Hey Cyke, how bout a game of pool." Wolverine calmly says as he begins to rack the balls. 

"WHAT!? We've gotta go stop them before they kill each other." 

"They ain't gonna kill each other." 

"How can you be so sure?" 

"They're more scared of Sammi than they are of me and Creed on our worst days." 

Cyke calms down mulling over what Logan said in his mind as he proceeds to break. 

**_~MEANWHILE BACK AT THE RANCH (sorry, i've always wanted to use that line)...uh..Danger Room~_**

Jonas and Jamar continue to wreak havoc in the Danger Room. Over the den of noise, Jonas taunts Jamar. 

"I sense much anger in you...JEDI!" As Jonas says the last words, his tone does not deny the fact that it was meant as a slur. There's a bright light and everything in the Danger Room changes as the program is telepathically altered to look like most people's visions of Hell... and then all hell breaks loose. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda sits with Xavier, letting her mind drift, probing her surroundings; she senses nothing from the Danger Room. 

**Sammi, what's going on with Jamar and Jonas?** 

/What do you mean?/ 

**I can't sense anything from them.** 

Without replying, Sammi sets off in a mad dash for the Danger Room. As she stands before the door punching the release button nothing happens and she cannot pick up anything with her senses. 

/Come on!/ She says as she unsheathes her claws and cuts the door open. 

She prepares herself for the horror that's soon to follow, but stops her mouth agape as she sees the Danger Room totally thrashed with burn marks and holes potmarking the walls. What she sees stuns her as she witnesses Jonas and Jamar sitting in the middle of chaos watching replays of the fight. 

"..that was messed up. You had a tree try to eat me." Jamar laughs as he watches the holographic replay the tree trying to swallow him before he slices it in half with a flaming sword. 

"Yeah it was really funny... but what was with that flaming vortex with the psionic teeth?" Jonas laughs as a burst of Dragon breath blows it up and melts the door shut. 

"AHEM!!!" They both turn seeing Sammi standing behind them. 

"UH OH!!!" 

"UH OH!!!" 

**Chaos**

**_~Cara's Room~_**

Cara sat up in the middle of the room...the ordeal was over...for now. She was shaking...how could so much pain exist? What could she do to help? She felt powerless...worthless. There seemed no way for her to help the others. Always in her own nightmares, she watched thousands of her friends and loved ones die. 

Always she tried to help them, but could never reach them in time. She was always left alone among the dead. All alone. She felt guilty. It had been her mind...her nightmares. She should have been able to control them. Should have been able to stop the destruction from happening. But she couldn't. She was too weak. 

Cara pulled her knees close to her body, and wrapped her arms tightly around her legs...she rocked back and forth, sobbing into her knees. 

~My child, why do you weep?~ said a silvery voice in Cara's mind. 

For a moment, Cara almost thought it was Anon...but she knew it wasn't. 

/Ymela...sister of Anon./ she thought. 

~Yes, my child, you have remembered well...but, child, why do you weep?~ 

/I am powerless to help my friends. I am worth nothing...weak. I never get there in time...I'm too slow. We're all going to be destroyed, and it will be all my fault./ Cara pauses, then goes on. /I can see the pain from my friends, but I do not know how to help them. What can I, a complete weakling, be able to do to help them?/ 

~Cara, you have felt their pain...now you must open your heart wider. Do not be afraid. Open your heart. Feel the love from your friends, and their strength. Do not despair Cara, you must feel what is there, and remind them of it. Anon has made them concentrate on their weaknesses; you must remind them of their strengths. Remind them Cara, be there for them...be their friend. Do not close yourself off from them...for together, you are all stronger than all the nightmares of creation. Together, you will succeed. And, Cara, remember this...you are also stronger than you believe. Farewell, my child.~ 

Cara sat silently on the floor, reflecting upon the words of Ymela. She was tired, and after seeing all of the nightmares, she really didn't want to be alone. 

/Jamar, you around? I kind of don't want to be alone...would you mind keeping me company? We still need to talk, and besides...I want to know how the fight between you and Jonas went.../ she thought with a half smile. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Danger Room~_**

"Hey sis...I...uh..." 

/Jamar, you around? I kind of don't want to be alone...would you mind keeping me company? We still need to talk, and besides...I want to know how the fight between you and Jonas went.../ 

/I'll be right there./ Jamar sends back his love caressing her through their mind link. 

"I'd love to stay and talk sis' but Cara needs me. Although I believe that Dragonboy...I mean Jonas can explain what happened better than I can." Jonas gives him a dirty look as he walks out. 

"Thanks Yoda." 

"Anytime." Jamar calls from down the hall. Jonas turns back to see the stern expression was still on Sammi's face. /Uh Jamar?/ 

/Yes sis./ 

/We'll talk about this later okay./ 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

/With all the technology in the Marvel Universe you'd think the elevators would be quicker and there'd be no elevator music./ 

/Well nothing's perfect./ Cara says through the mind link as she opens the door. 

/Some things are love./ He says as he enfolds her in a big hug and they share a most passionate kiss. Jamar lets loose with telekinesis floating them both inside and shutting the door behind them. 

Cara giggles as she realizes she's been literally swept off her feet. 

"Are you okay? You sounded worried and a bit scared earlier." he says as he lowers them to the floor. 

"There's a lot of fear flowing through the mansion. It's so intense and it's affecting everyone. I was worried it'd gotten to you but it seems you were too busy with Jonas to be influenced by it. So how did it go really? I caught some strong emotions from Sammi. I think she was going to beat you and Jonas up pretty bad to put it mildly." 

"Uh...It seems Jonas and I got a bit carried away. The Danger Room is gonna need a new paint job and a sh*t load of screen doors. Things got a bit intense after we pushed each other's buttons a bit too far." 

"What do you mean by 'intense'?" 

"Well...a man eating tree and a Jonas eating vortex." 

Cara can't help but laugh at the images that she gets from Jamar. One of him tugging his foot out of a tree that's treating him like a big piece of spaghetti and Jonas carving the floor up as the ceiling tiles in the Danger Room are sucked up around him into a Vortex with large teeth. 

"Nobody got hurt too bad anyway. But I'm more worried about you. If there are anymore shockwaves of fear, tell me. I'll do everything in my power and more to prevent any harm to you." He says as he rubs her shoulders calming her nerves with every gentle stroke. 

Jamar teleports them both to the roof. Cara is startled by the change in location and grabs hold of Jamar tight. The CD player from her dresser appears and begins playing "All My Life" by K-Ci & JoJo.They snuggle up together as they look at the Moon's last light. 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb slept with her head on Ryan's lap. Ryan looked down at the young girl and sighed. She was too young to be going through something like this. Maria looked to Ryan and saw the same pain in her eyes. 

"She is a tough girl. She is going to make it through this fine." Maria said, noting the concern in Ryan's face. 

"She reminds me of me when I was her age. I hope she turns out better then I did. She is off to a little bit better start then I was. She's got someone special. He better be good to her or he'll have to deal with me." Ryan said putting her best big sister/mother/friend impression she could do. 

"Me too!" Maria said and shot Ryan a smile. "Are you and Victor ok? I mean you guy's are like never apart and now he's not around." 

"I had a bad dream." Ryan said trying to hide the tears. "In it he tried to kill me. He said he was going to stop me from hurting anyone else. I just kinda had to get away." 

**Le Fae**

**_~Amanda's Room~_**

Amanda had been monitoring the nightmares of the various individuals, and she could sense that Anon was loving it. She was worried about Sabertooth, Sammi, and Cara, for they seemed to be the focus of Anon's attack. 

/I wonder if I could connect with Sinister while Anon was distracted,/ she thought. 

(Be warned fair lady... that mind is dangerous.) warned Thanagar. 

(It will be a challenge. Besides, don't tell me a warrior like you would miss it.) She heard her protectors groan and knew they would protect her if she need it. 

Amanda let her mind drift carefully along the plain while the dragon provide a shield from Anon's detection. The witch seemed to be focusing on Sabertooth, and Amanda hoped that Victor would be strong enough to fight her. She found Sinister's mind and gently connected to it. She could sense his strong belief that his mind was unapproachable by telepaths. What a loser, she thought. 

Amanda could see how Sinister had selected them because of their emotional weaknesses, and his firm belief that he could manipulate them with those weaknesses. He had planned for them to destroy the X-men, and purposely made sure that the various members of Vision X had powers that matched the X-men. She could also see how he was responsible for separating Sammi from Logan. 

Amanda cautiously probed deeper to find out more. She found out that both Cara and she had the power to stop Anon. This piece of info was interesting. Amanda suspected that Cara would probably have the better shot because Anon would underestimate her. She also found out that Sammi's fireworks were more powerful than she knew. Amanda figured that this meant that Sammi had the best chance to defeat Sinister. 

Amanda also found out info on various X-men, including who was Scott's other sibling. She knew the others would flip when she told them. She also learned how Sinister gave them there powers, and that if they were to return home they wouldn't have their powers or memory of being here. This bit of info was going to be shared with Vision X only before they faced Sinister. 

(We best leave child.) warned Thanagar. 

Amanda agreed and pulled away. She knew that Anon had not detected her yet, but there was no need to take chances. The info was to valuable to lose. As she pulled away, she could feel Sinister fight her exit. She used a great deal of energy to pull away. Having not fully recovered, Amanda screamed when her mind connected with her body. 

/Oh, great... They will all come breaking down my door if I keep screaming like that,/ she thought. She could already hear footsteps. /Oh well, I was going to call a meeting anyway./ 

**A.C.**

**_~Danger Room~_**

"Honey, I can explain." Jonas said as he quickly got up and started backing away from her. 

"Explain." Sammi said as she slowly walked towards Jonas. 

"You told us we could fight. 'Get it out of our systems,' you said. That's what we did. We were only listening to you." Jonas said as he continued to back away from her, but suddenly he found he couldn't as he hit the wall. "Oh no." 

Sammi couldn't help but smile at the look on his face. "That's not why I'm upset." 

"Then what?" Now he was confused. 

Sammi was now in front of him. " I was worried. Amanda was doing one of her rounds, which by the way was her ninth in the past hour, and said that she didn't pick you two up. That's when I got worried." 

Jonas melted. "I'm sorry, sweetheart." He hugged her and said," I'll never do that again." 

Sammi pulled back, looked him in the eyes, smiled sweetly and said, "Please don't, or..." She quickly pulled back and started punching him in the shoulder, while finishing,"You'll get a lot more than this." 

Jonas was trying to get a hold of her hands, but she was successfully avoiding capture. 

**_~Rec Room~_**

Logan was lining up a shot that would bring Scott to tears, when he heard the professor's voice in his head. 

*I'm sorry to do this, but Amanda had Sammi check on Jonas and Jamar. Amanda wasn't picking up on them. Jamar is now with Cara, but Sammi is now missing along with Jonas.* 

*What are you getting at, Chuck?* 

* Your daughter and her boyfriend are missing, and.......* Charles was saying when Logan cut him off. 

*She's a telepath, so is he. Did you ever think that maybe they don't want to be found?* 

* It would make all parties concerned happier if you would just go and check on them.* 

*Fine.* Logan thought as he slammed the pool cue down on the table, and stomped out the door muttering a few things that would have made Sabertooth blush. 

**_~Danger Room~_**

Sammi and Jonas's struggle turned into a playful slapping match, and then a wrestling match. 

"So far, that's five me and three you. " Sammi said with a smug look on her face. She had him pinned to the ground on his back with her hands holding down his arms, and she was sitting on his chest. 

**Jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sean wandered the hallways in a worried fashion. The girl, Maria, had vanished in all the chaos and no one seemed to notice. "Maria!" he yelled out in a normal way. 

Suddenly, he heard a sound coming from one of the guest bedrooms. Cautiously he opened the door to see the TV and several tapes scattered all around the place. There were also sounds of laughter and giggles coming from the supposedly empty bed. "So, this is where ye have been all this time." Sean said as the girl reappeared. 

"Yeah. So, someone finally noticed I was gone." Maria said as she watched the tape. 

Sean picked up the tapes and read, "Dragonball Z? Street Fighter the movie?" 

"Training tapes. I was watching these movies and I learned that I can copy their moves." Maria said as she did a series of kicks and hand movements that copied the ones on the screen perfectly. "Cool huh?" 

"I guess." Sean muttered as he looked at a few more tapes, "Space Balls? Pokemon?" 

"Just for laughs." Maria said as she grinned. "Kinda cheers me up after being forgotten all this time." 

**Maria Cline**

**_~Danger Room~_**

"Is that so?" Jonas asked Sammi and flipped them both over, as his body grew and he gained the upper hand in strength, pinning down Sammi to the floor. 

"Now this is not really fair is it?" Sammi said with a grin. 

"Was not meant to be..." Jonas said grinning back. "You're a real Fox, you know that?" He asked and looked in to her eyes. 

Knowing he was off balance, Sammi pulled her legs around his neck and swung the both over end, Sammi extended her claws on each side of his head as he came down on his back. 

"I know, I'm cunning and ALWAYS have another trick up my sleeve." Sammi was grinning even wider now. 

Jonas turned back in to his human form, his scales retracting under his skin, his edge was his strength and Thanagar's fighting abilities that was from fighting in Dragon form, not really that useful in human form, but he was still considerably stronger then Sammi. 

"Oh, I was more thinking about your good looks." He smiled up at her, his wings sprung from his back and pushed them over end again. 

Sammi let out some Fireworks and he was momentarily blinded, but he didn't need his eyes Thanagar's experience from fighting in complete darkness guided him, his movements, and he pinned down her arms again. 

"That's not a bad name." Jonas said and suddenly became serious. 

"What?" she asked, as she struggled with his hands. 

"You asked me to give you a code name, how about FireFox?" 

Sammi didn't respond. Jonas looked at her she was struggling. 

"Sammi did... wow!!! aow aow..." Jonas was thrown to the side as Sammi grabbed his wing and flipped him over. 

Jonas grimaced, as it just felt as if someone had pulled his ears. His wing was more sensitive in human form... 

"Sorry, didn't mean to hurt you." Sammi said, sitting across his chest. She moved her hand down to the side of his chest, feeling her fingertips over his gills. 

Jonas gasped, and tensed under her, and quickly grabbed her hand. "Please, not there... I don't like them myself... beside they feel funny." 

Sammi bent down and kissed him, sliding her other hand over the gills on the other side. "I don't mind them, and I like the name... FireFox." 

He pulled away from the kiss. "I don't think we should be found in this rather compromising position." 

They kissed again and Jonas wrapped his arms around her. 

Jonas closed his eyes. "Oh, Crap...." 

Sammi and Jonas looked over at the door to see a not too happy Logan standing there. 

"Oh, hi Dad... every thing ok?" Sammi ask and look at him. 

"I was... asked... to check on you... but I can see that you to have every thing under control... I HOPE!" He said throwing a look at Jonas. 

**Admiral**

**_~The Roof~_**

A few moments pass by and all Ryan can hear is the sound of Teb's rhythmic breathing and her own heartbeat. Maria is very quiet, her eyes unfocused, gazing off into space. 

**_~Maria's Dream~_**

Maria's face dropped, when Sean Cassidy's face began to pale...then his entire form began to change. Maria watched in horror as she realized who he resembled...It was Sinister!!! 

Maria took a fighting stance. 

"Alright, Mystique, I know it's you...I don't know HOW you got into the mansion without the alarms going off, but you're not getting any further than this room." she said, and let loose with a sonic scream. 

"AAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" 

But the figure didn't move...didn't even flinch. Sinister smiled an evil smile. 

"Don't you know your powers can't hurt me? You are powerless, and all alone...there is noone to help you. I have all of your friends...observe." he says, as he waves his hand at the far wall. 

The wall disappears to reveal a concrete cell. Maria stared in horror as she saw all of her friends were chained to the wall, broken and bleeding...their heads were all hanging down. 

Just then, Cara lifted her head and stared accusingly at Maria, "This is all your fault...you're the one who caused this...how could you run from the battle like that? You are a coward, Maria, a coward..." Cara says, and her voice fades away as her head once more drops against her chest. 

Maria's eyes grow wide and her face pales...she tried to speak, but her mouth wouldn't open. She turned to look at Sinister. 

Sinister smiled. "Now, it's your turn..." he said, as he began to advance toward Maria. 

Maria tried to scream, but she couldn't...her mouth still wouldn't open. she tried to turn invisible, but it wouldn't work. She watched in horror as the cement she was standing on began to rise around her feet and legs, making escape impossible. Maria's eyes filled with horror as Sinister came up to stand in front of her, his eyes filled with evil. 

"Anon, we need another statue for the garden...this one will have to suffice...begin the transformation." he said, and turned to walk away. 

Another figure in the room moved...this one was tall and wore a long dark cloak...the hood covered the face. The cloaked figure moved to stand in front of Maria...and began to remove the mask from her face. 

Maria watched in horror, as she saw she was looking into silver eyes. She felt that this would be the end for sure. Just then, the cloaked figure smiled...a good, gentle, sweet smile. 

"Have no fear, child... for I have broken the hold of my sister. I am Lady Ymela, and I am here to watch out for you, and your friends." 

The cloaked figure waves her hand, and the nightmare disappears...they are once again standing in Maria's room. 

The mysterious figure throws off the cloak, to reveal a tall, beautiful woman. She had silver hair, and silver eyes, and a gentle, kind face. But the most extraordinary thing about this woman, was the pair of angel wings attached to her back. They were beautiful. 

the woman plucked one of the enchanted feathers from her wing, and handed it to the Surprised Maria. 

"This will protect you...now you must return to your friends...they are missing you. Farewell, my child." the woman says, as she vanishes into thin air. 

Maria wakes up with a start, and looks over at Ryan and Teb. She realized that she was still on the roof, and had been there the whole time. 

/What a strange dream,/ she thinks, as she raises her hand to stifle a yawn...it was then she noticed, that she still held the enchanted, rainbow feather. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Leilee and Gambit's Room~_**

While this all happened, Leilee was asleep in Gambit's arms, and as she slept, she dreamed.... 

Leilee stood in a dark tunnel, imprinted with grey psychedelic patterns. The kind you see when you rub your eyes. Only, the patterns formed faces of people she knew and loved. 

Jason, her ex. "Didn't you know? I was only using you to get back at Ashley. Why would I want you?" 

Her parents. "Why can you major in a real career? Why can't you be more like your brothers? Why do you always have to be a disappointment?" 

Her dance teacher. "I don't know what made you think you could dance. You dance like a fat cow. Don't bother coming back. I don't want to waste my time on a lost cause like you." 

Her new friends. "You have a useless power. It's so stupid. What makes you think you can help us defeat Sinister? You're a selfish little brat. Why couldn't you have a better power?" 

Leilee's eyes filled with tears at their censure and she ran off, eyes closed against the mocking faces. She ran and knocked into a hard chest. 

Blinking tears out of her eyes, she looked up and whispered, "Remy...?" 

Remy stood above her with Rogue curled up next to him. "What? You actually thought I'd want YOU when I could have Rogue? You were just convenient. But now that Rouge has learned to control her powers, I'm going with her. You didn't think I actually LOVED you, did you? Oh! You did! That's so sweet!" 

Leilee looked up at them. Remy looked just like he did usually, but Rogue.....Something was wrong. That little thing was niggling the back of her brain. What was it..... 

Leilee looked a little closer and saw the thing. Rogue's eyes....She stood up and walked up to Rogue. "Hello Anon. I'm Leilee. I'll be the person who's going to kick your ass now. And just so you know, Rogue's eyes are green. not blue. " 

Anon's disguise melted away along with their surroundings. "Bitch." 

"Skank." 

"Why you..." Anon snarled as she tackled Leilee. The two rolled as they grappled, each trying to get the upper hand. Suddenly, Anon grew another pair of hands. "Little bitch. Don't you know I control this plane?" 

In the real world, Leilee began to gasp, wheeze and choke..... 

**Leilee**


	30. Reality Bites-Part 30

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 30

**

Sabretooth found Ryan sleeping on the roof with Maria and Teb. He was relieved to find just the girls up there. Victor looked at Ryan's face and caressed her cheek. What are you doing with a creep like me, he thought. Ryan's eyelashes fluttered a little and she opened her eyes. 

"Good morning." She said smiling at him and grabbing his hand. She gently placed a kiss in the palm of it. 

He smiled back and said "Mornin' frail, you sleep well?" 

"Not really. I had some nightmares. I haven't had one of those that scared me this bad since I was a kid." 

"Me too." Sabretooth said as he sniffed her hand. 

"What was that for?" She asked, puzzled by the gesture. 

"Just checkin." 

**Le Fae**

**_~Leilee's Nightmare~_**

Leilee could feel herself slipping into unconsciousness, as Anon laughed in sheer delight. Then Anon suddenly looked up, distracted by someone who had entered into her nightmare. Leilee felt some strength flow into her, from a reserve she didn't realize she had. 

A voice in Leilee's head whispered "Now, while she is distracted; cause her heart to stop for a moment, but please do not kill her." 

Leilee fighting for her very life concentrates, putting her entire being into doing as the voice requested. Anon lets go, and falls back clutching at her chest.... Her eyes full of hatred. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Leilee wakes up gasping, feeling a bit shaky, and finds herself staring into the worried red eyes of Gambit. 

"Mon Chere...what is wrong? Gambit was afraid he'd lose you. Are you alright?" He asked, as he helped her into a sitting position. 

Leilee took a shaky breath, and let it out slowly. "Yes, Remy, I'm fine, now." 

Gambit wrapped his arms tightly around the shaken girl...and she hugged him back just as tightly. 

Just then, a thought crossed Leilee's mind. "I'm really sorry to break this up, Remy, but I really need to talk to Amanda...so, hold that thought, okay?" she said. 

She reluctantly slipped out of Gambit's warm embrace, put on a robe, and hurried out the door. She had a feeling that this might be a good time to strike. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~Medlab~_**

Hank sits at his desk, contemplating on things that have happened so far. He gets up to check on Hope once more, concerned hearing a sound from her. Worried that Anon was attacking her, he moves over as if to protect her from the unseen. To his astonishment, he sees the look of peace settle upon her face. 

Pulling up a chair he watches Hope while she sleeps, enjoying the vision of beauty which lay in front of him. Hank reaches out and strokes her hair, marveling at how silky her long, dark green tresses felt. He gently takes one of Hope's hands and marvels at how delicate it looks in his own hands. Gently he kisses her fingertips one by one. Then he places her hand back on the bed. 

Feeling a bit tired, Hank rests his head upon Hope's bed, to only close his eyes for a few moments. Soon he falls asleep. 

**_~Their Dream~_**

Hope finds herself in a beautiful meadow, the sun shining warmly, a cool breeze gently blowing, while butterflies chase each other around the fragrant flowers in bloom. Hope is in a long white lacy dress, sitting on a blanket. Her glossy, dark green tresses move slightly as the breeze caresses her locks. 

Across from her is Hank, holding some flowers in his hands, gently laying them down near the picnic basket of food. Nearby, grazing on grass, is a white horse, unhitched from a carriage. And a bubbling brook murmurs near the apple tree, not far from them. In the apple tree is a swing, big enough for two. 

Hank is wearing a shirt much like that of the swashbucklers of olden times, with form fitting black pants that are not too tight, but are tailored just right. 

As Hank lays the flowers out on the blanket, he tells Hope the messages that they mean. 

"Thou are all that is lovely," laying an Austrian rose down. "I have watched over you day and night, and I could not help but love you," Hank says as he lays down a golden moss rose blossom. (A confession of love) 

Hope blushes a little bit. Hank continues. "I offer my humble services, dear lady, as a Knight ready to do his lady's bidding..." Laying down a monkshood blossom. 

"I know this is very sudden, dear lady. I hope that you will accept my devotion to you." As he lays a Peruvian Heliotrope down as well. 

With trembling fingers, Hope picks up the flowers that he laid before her. 

"I accept, Sir knight. And here is my favor for you to wear." She gives him an white silk scarf with her initials upon it in emerald green thread. Hank kisses her hand and accepts it. 

"Dear Lady, will you tie it upon my arm?" 

Hope thinks to herself as she ties the scarf oh his arm ~There is not a lot of time to get to know each other, but still, it is nice to know that I have someone who loves me. And I do like him.~ 

Hank and Hope talk about their love of horticulture and enjoy their time together. A friendship blossoming between them. Hank also takes Hope by the hand and he gently pushes her in the swing under the apple tree. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hank wakes up feeling refreshed. He stretches thinking of the dream he had with Hope... As he stretches he stops short.. 

"What in the world?" 

There tied on his right arm is a white silk scarf, with Hope's initials in emerald green thread. He looks over at Hope, and in her hands are the flowers he gave her in his/their dream. 

"How extraordinary..." 

"Indeed," says a voice from the hospital bed. 

Hank looks and sees Hope looking at him, smiling, her hazel green eyes sparkling. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~The Roof~_**

/It seems that our getaway has become a bit crowded./ Cara says on a telepathic link. 

/Yeah! I just noticed./ Jamar sends back as he watches Sabretooth walk over to Ryan. 

"May as well ask them all over to join the party." Jamar says as he changes the CD. 

TK envelopes the CD player as Jamar and Cara walk hand in hand over to the others sitting in the middle of the roof. 

As the CD whirls around, it begins spitting out the Beastie Boys "You Gotta Fight For Your Right To Party!" The girls begin dancing around. As Jamar peers over the side of the roof, he synchs with Sabretooth blinking his eyes bringing them into better focus. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cyke begins to walk out of the mansion to greet Warren and Nate. They saw the look on his face and knew something was up. 

"What's wrong, oh fearless leader? Did Jean kick you out or something?" Warren asked. 

"No nothing like that. I seem to have misplaced several of the Vision Xer's and one psychopathic mutant." 

"You worried Sabretooth might have eaten them, Slymm?" Nate asked. 

"I'm making sure that Creed and Jamar haven't run out somewhere to rob a liquor store or burn down some houses." 

**_~The Roof~_**

Jamar felt the air flow change and noticed Sabretooth standing beside him listening to the conversation. Both of them looked at each other with a look of extreme mischief. 

Cara and Ryan stop dancing when they notice their respective partners are no longer dancing, but are standing at the edge of the roof. 

/Hey Creed... how 'bout a little fun?/ 

/Sure thing kid./ The smile on Jamar's face sends a chill running up his spine. 

**Jubilee?** 

"Jamar? Sabretooth? What are you guys up to?" Both give an innocent smile which fails miserably. 

**_~Jubilee's Room~_**

Something stirs beneath a pile of covers, clothes, and assorted munchies. "Whuh? hunh? J..j..amar? Where are you?" 

"I'm on the roof. There's a party up here... wanna join us? Oh, by the way, do you still have the water balloons you bought the other day?" 

"Yeah sure...I still got them." 

"Cool. Grab them and the water cannon." 

"Okay!" She runs and fills up the whole bag of water balloons and tosses them gently into a garbage bag. 

"Alright I'm com....." _WHUSH_ "...ing." She says as she appears on the roof in her pj's. Several more portals open depositing the other members of GenX onto the roof all clad in pj's and armed with water cannons. 

"Your mission is to soak every member of the X-men, starting with the three X-men below us. And as always... if any member of your team is captured, we will disavow any knowledge of your activities." Jamar says in a serious voice. Then waves his hand tk'ing a hail of water balloons above the three X-men. Creed takes his cue. 

"The battle lines have been drawn. ATTACK!!!" He screams as he picks up a water cannon and jumps through one of the portals, as do the members of GenX. 

**Chaos**

**_~Amanda's Room~_**

/Hey sis!/ 

/What is it Jamar?/ Sammi asks. 

/You're not still mad, are ya?/ 

/No. You sound funny... what's up?/ 

/Oh, I just wanted to tell you that you have 3 incoming Mutant Water Commandos, bent on saturating Xavier and dear ole dad./ 

/What?/ She yelps out loud and mentally as three large purple portals open up on seperate sides of the room and water begins gushing forth followed by Husk, Chamber, and Artie. 

"Incoming!" Sammi yells to Jonas and Wolverine. They both jump out of the way and roll, except for Wolverine who finds his way blocked by another portal. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

/What the...?/ Logan thinks as he realizes the portal took him several feet above the lake. **Have a nice swim, pop!** 

/I'm gonna get you kid. Well I guess there's nothing else to do but say.../ 

"CANNONBALL!!!" 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Simultaneous purple portals appear in both Athena and Bobby's room, and Storm's room. The shrieks which came out of both rooms echoed and reverberated throughout the mansion. 

"JAMAR!!!" came three simultaneous shouts, as three very wet and angry people ran down the corridors... two from the main floor, and one from the attic. They met on the set of main stairs... and surveyed each other's appearances. 

The corners of Storm's mouth began to tilt upwards...no matter how hard she tried to keep them down. Seeing Bobby and Athena like that...well, she was having a very difficult time trying not to laugh. 

Athena took one look at Storm, and Bobby...and had to turn her head. She was nothing if not polite... but she still had to stifle a giggle. 

Bobby took one look at Storm...and immediately fell on the ground, laughing as hard as he could. He'd never seen her look that way before in his entire life. Storm glared at him. 

"This is not funny, Robert...setting off water balloons in the mansion, with all of the electrical equipment we have, is very dangerous...something must be done to stop this childish nonsense." She said...but just then... 

~WHOOOOOOOSH, SPLASH!!!~ a huge pink water balloon crashed down on Storm's head. 

Storm wiped the water from her eyes, and pushed back her dripping hair..."Then again, turn about is fair play..." she said, and smiled a vicious smile. 

Bobby and Athena looked at each other, and grinned...they were about to have some fun. 

**Rainfall**

**_~The Roof~_**

The music starts back up and the party continues. 

/Cara. I have to take care of something, okay? I'll be back in a few minutes./ 

/Stay outta trouble./ 

/I promise./ 

They kiss and he takes a running go and jumps from the roof eliciting a couple of gasps before he teleports away. 

/Show off!/ 

**I love you too!** 

**_~Danger Room, Control Room~_**

/It's a good thing I spent some time with Forge before he left./ Jamar sits back and begins fiddling with the keyboard and pulls a data disc from it and slips it into a machine that at one time was a camcorder and flips the switch hearing it hum. 

"Hey! This piece of crap actually works." He takes the machine and sticks it in his room and teleports back to the roof. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

A portal opens behind Cara and Jamar hugs around her kissing her once again. 

/Surprise! I told you it wouldn't take long./ 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi quickly got up and grabbed Jonas and Amanda. "Follow me. I've got a plan." She said. 

They ran out of the room and down the hall. Sammi stopped at the bathroom and turned to Amanda and said," I hid some water balloons that I found on Jubilee in there." She pointed at the door. "There, under the sink. Fill them up and head for the kitchen. We'll meet you there." 

Sammi and Jonas quickly made it up to their room. 

"Back of the closet." Sammi told him as she headed for the bottom drawer of the dresser. She pulled out a huge water gun and turned to see Jonas staring at the other one that he had in his hands. 

"Where did you get these?" he asked. 

"When we were at the mall, remember I had Jubilee get my stuff? Well, I think she got these and forgot where she put them. They were in my bags." Sammi said with a smile. 

Jonas smiled back and said, "I love you." 

"I know. Now let's soak these guys." She said as they ran downstairs. 

They got to the kitchen and found Amanda. She looked at the guns and was about to ask, but Sammi cut her off. 

"Jubilee, left them in my bags. Let's go. I have a few X-men I have always wanted to get to loosen up, and now is our chance." Sammi smiled and headed outside where they saw Warren and Scott. Sammi quickly opened fire on Warren and dived behind a bush. 

As Warren was looking around trying to find out where that blast came from, Bishop came walking up. Sammi sprang up with Jonas and Amanda, and they all opened fire on Bishop. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Still laughing after eluding a very wet Bishop, Amanda went in search of Xavier. Of course she had managed not to get wet. She found him by the pool absolutely soaked. Amanda tried not to laugh, but the image was just too funny. Xavier turned towards her with a wary expression. 

"I don't have anything I could possibly say to explain this." stated Amanda. 

"Don't. I haven't had this much fun in years. You have all made our lives much more exciting and fun. I just wanted to thank you." replied Charles. 

"That's really big of you, considering you are soaked. I figured they all needed some time away from their problems. Besides, Anon can't touch people when they're happy. Maybe the lesson we're supposed to learn from all this is to enjoy life." 

"Did you learn anything from Sinister?" 

"I figured you knew. Yes, I did. Do you know that Sinister was responsible for Logan being a part of the Weapon X program, and that Sammi was conceived during his time in it?" 

"But that's...." 

"Really Charles, is anything? I'll tell you more later. Relax. The time will come soon when play time is over." 

"You're right. I was thinking of having some fun now." 

"Is that why you were by the pool?" 

Before she could get a reply, Charles grabbed her hand and pulled them both into the pool. Great, she thought, I was dry too. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Where is everyone?" asked Leliee. 

**A.C.**

Leilee had been unable to find Amanda, and went back to her room to get dressed. When she came back out of her room, she went in search of the others. As she came around a corner, she bumped into a very wet Storm, Bobby and Athena. 

"What happened to you three?" she laughed. 

Just then, *WHOOSH!* *SPLASH!!!* "AACK!!!" yelped Leilee, as a huge blue waterballoon dumped its contents on her head. 

She glared at the snickering trio, calmly wrung her hair out, and said, "This means war." 

**_~The Roof~_**

Cara stood on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around Jamar's neck, and kissed him again. She felt so safe in his arms...so loved. She didn't want this feeling to end. Just then... 

~WHOOOOOOSH! SPLAAAAASH!~ "EEEEEEEEEEK!!!" Cara shrieked, as she was hit from behind by a giant purple waterballoon, thrown by Teb. 

Cara jack-knifed out of Jamar's arms...she was now dripping wet from head to toe. Jamar, on the other hand, was bone-dry...his psi sheild had protected him. Jamar grinned at the dripping Cara, and winked. A snickering Teb and Angelo ran scurrying for cover. 

"OOOOOOHHHH, you think that's funny, do you?" Cara said, looking back at Jamar... she smiled her most innocent, sweet smile. "Well, luv, I'm gonna get ya for that one..." she said, as she grabbed a water cannon, and began to chase Jamar around the roof with it. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Angelo looked into Teb's playful eyes. Back to her old self, he thought with relief. 

"Race ya to the lake!" Teb screamed, and swung herself down from the roof and started running. 

"You're on, Chica!" Ange said, and followed her. 

Ange passed her and got to the edge of the lake first. 

"I won!" 

"No you didn't!" Teb screamed and ran past him and jumped into the lake. 

**TEB**

As Teb and Ange jumped into the lake, a very soggy Wolverine stepped out and began to shake the water off. Pointing at Ange he growls, "Hey kid, where's Jamar?" 

"Uh...he's...uh, in the woods." 

"Let's try this again, 'where's Jamar'?" 

"He's at the party on the roof." 

Wolverine began to march back up to the mansion. As he stepped up to the door a gruff voice called to him. 

"Hey runt... heads up!" Creed yells as he launches three balloons onto Logan's head. "HEH HEH HEH HEH HAAAA HAA!" Creed grabs at his sides and drops to the roof and begins rolling with the laughter. 

"Ya think that's funny don'tcha, bub?" Snikt! Wolverine pops his claws and begins to scale the side of the mansion. Jamar stops and listens to the commotion as he hears adamantium grinding against the stone walls. Cara proceeds to drench him from head to toe. 

"Uh Oh!" Jamar runs to the side of the roof and ices it up, making Wolverine lose his grip. As he falls, another purple vortex appears. 

**_~By the Boathouse~_**

A vortex appears and out drops Wolverine into the middle of Teb and Ange's private swim party. 

"Aye amigo... haven't you had enough for today?" Teb and Ange both begin to laugh and splash each other. 

**Chaos**

*SNIKT* "Wanna say that again, bub?" 

"Hey, hey... easy der Wolvie..." Ange said and held up his hands. 

"Um, excuse me, Mr. Logan? you have some...weeds on you..." she pushed a hunk of weeds off Logan's shoulder. 

Wolvie grunted and stepped out of the lake....again. "That boy's gonna pay..." 

Teb and Angelo were rolling with laughter. 

"Goodbye Mr. Logan!" Teb called and waved. "See you in a few minutes!" 

"Damn kids..." 

**teb**

Logan gets up to the roof once more, and is met by another purple vortex. Instead of ending up in the lake, he finds himself falling onto Hope's bed along with several water balloons. 

Hope squeals as Hank deftly moves her out of the way, before she is squished by Logan. Water is all over the place from the very wet Logan and the balloons breaking on contact with the bed. 

"Blasted kid.. he needs a lesson taught to him." 

Two more balloons come flying through and this time hits Hank and Hope. Sploosh!!! Right on the top of their heads. 

"Aacck!!" Hope says feeling the ice cold water dripping down her face, her neck and back. Her eyes flash with fire, then she says to Logan "I'll be glad to help out. Where did you say the culprit is at?" 

Hank, his blue fur all spiky, where the balloon hit, nods at Logan. 

"Yes, this must be dealt with great speed and cunning." 

Logan leads the way out of the Medical Lab, followed by Hope and Beast. They reach the main stairs and climb up only to see Storm, Bobby, Athena and Leilee; all four in the same wet condition that they are in. 

"So the kid got you as well.." Says Logan, a thoughtful look on his face. 

Before Logan or anyone else can say another word, Hope holds up her hand then makes a few gestures. 

"Now we can talk. He can't hear us plan our sweet revenge." 

"Sweet revenge?" Athena giggles, a plan forming in her mind. "How about whipped cream?" 

The seven victims put their heads together and plot their revenge. 

Once they are done plotting, they head up to the roof of the mansion. 

Jamar sees Logan and tries to teleport him away, but finds that he is unable to do so. Logan moves towards Jamar with a grin. Jamar moves out of his way only to find his way barred by Leilee, Storm, Athena and Bobby, all holding water balloons. 

Jamar quickly teleports out of the way, only to find himself right in the middle of the pool that is now filled with whipped cream!!! 

Cara laughs at Jamar from the roof. "Oh Jamar, you are SOOOO SWEET!" 

**Dreamweaver**

"EW...ACK..STICKY!" Jamar pulls himself out of the pool. He is coated from head to toe with goo. 

"I guess turnabout is fair play." He bows to the roof full of people as they hoot, holler, and whistle down at him. Waving his hand across his body he ices up and liquifies and returns once again to his original and more clean state. 

"What's wrong kid? You just gonna stand there and sulk, or are you coming back up?" 

"No, I don't think I will." 

/Hey, Cara love, brace yourself./ Cara visibly stiffens. Smiling he sends his plan to Synch. A rainbow aura envelopes Jamar as his abilities synch with Ev's and they boost it tenfold. 

//IT'S TIME TO EVEN OUT THE PLAYING FIELD!!!// Jamar thought-casts to everyone on the grounds. 

There's a bright purple flash on top of, inside, and all over the mansion. 

**_~The Lake~_**

Teb and Ange had decided to step out on the bank. They were snuggling up into each others arms as the largest portal ever experienced appeared above the lake. 

"Yo Ange... incoming!" 

!!!!!CANNONBALL!!!!!---Synch screams. 

Every member of Gen X, X-men, Vision X, etc. on the mansion grounds began falling into the lake. The mastermind of it all floated to the ground, accompanied closely by Cara. 

**Chaos**

As everyone was getting out of the lake, Wolverine came over to Sammi and Jonas and said, "He's your brother, you take care of him." 

Sammi smiled and said," Well, If he's my brother and you're my father, That makes him YOUR SON by default... so YOU take care of him." 

Wolverine's eyes kinda glazed over for a second, then he said, "Anything goes?" 

"Yep, Anything. Why?" Sammi said getting a little worried. 

"Follow me darlin'. You just made yourself bait." Wolverine said as he walked towards the house with Sammi and Jonas following. 

**_~The Lake~_**

Jamar looked at Cara and everyone coming out of the lake and asked,"Has anyone seen my sister, Jonas or Wolverine?" 

He was greeted with a round of no's but one 'I saw them head for the mansion.' So Jamar headed for the mansion. 

**_~In the Mansion~_**

Sammi and Logan were rigging up all of the doors from the kitchen to the bathroom in the downstairs. Jonas had been given the upstairs and only a few rooms. Sammi and Logan smelled Jamar coming, so Sammi telepathically called Jonas. By the time Jamar stepped into the house, all three were seated in the living room talking. 

Jamar walked in and said, "There you are. What's the matter... you didn't like my surprise?" 

Sammi looked over at him and said, "I did, but dad didn't." She looked over to Logan and continued. "He grounded ME because of you." 

She got up and stepped away into the hallway. As Jamar headed after her, he opened the door heading to the kitchen and "Splash!" He was hit by a bucket of water. He looked up to see Sammi laughing like crazy. 

She walked up to him, opened her hand and said, "Here, I didn't get the chance to give this to you while you were in the pool." And she dropped a cherry on his head and stood back to admire her work. 

Just then there was a flash of light and both of them turned to see Wolverine with a camera, smiling like the Cheshire Cat. 

**jubilee_79**

Jamar shakes his head, slinging water everywhere, then eats the cherry. They all begin to laugh. 

"I say we hold a cease-fire." He and Wolverine shake on it, thus beginning the first Water War Armistice. 

**Amanda I need your help. I have something special planned.** 

/I'll help you as best I can Jamar...just no more water balloons today, 'k?/ 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The battle was coming close; Jonas could feel the anticipation, the urge to fight. Every fiber of his being was ready, but still he was calm... calmer then ever before, like it was this way he was to exist... yet a part of him was in conflict. 

He knew that this was the end. Either he would meet death for the second time, or they would go back home... 

/home?/ He thought... what home? He was not human anymore. Could he even go back? If he could, what kind of life was he to live? 

He would follow his friends to hell and back... but when it came to going home, could he go with them? 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

/Amanda, are they ready for this?/ Jonas asked Amanda telepathically, as he mentally went over the plan in his head. 

/Why? So you doubt their ability, do you not trust me to make that order?/ Amanda asked back. 

/I know you're right, and I still have concerns about it all. We will most likely be walking into a trap... Sinister will be waiting, and so will Anon./ Amanda could tell that Jonas hated her with every fiber of his being. 

/We don't have the luxury to wait.../ Amanda started. 

Jonas cut her off. /We are going back, aren't we?/ Jonas walked over to the window. 

/I can feel it, we are like brothers, the dragons you keep in your mind... that makes you my sister./ Jonas mind was like a cold wind to Amanda. 

/Jonas, I don't know if we are going back... if we do, we won't remember this.../ Amanda once again was cut off. 

/But I am not who I was when I came here, I am not in Sinister's sick little plan... what of me? Will I return in this form? Will I keep my memories.../ Jonas paused. 

/I am destined to return my race to their rightful place of their home. I was returned here as a favor to a god... Will I to go back to our earth or will I go back as what I have become? You see my hesitation./ Jonas asked 

Amanda was about to say more, but Jonas gave her no time. /I am not a mutant created by Sinister, that person died... I am what is left, but is that enough?/ 

/Jonas, Sinister doesn't even understand who you are, that you are Jonas... I don't know what will happen to you... I... I just don't know./ 

Jonas said nothing more, he didn't have to. Amanda had given him what he needed... even if it was no real answer, it was the truth. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

It was time to leave, some had decided to leave a recording for the X-men, Jonas wanted to leave something for someone special, but not a recording. 

He walked in to Rogue's room and placed a hand full of earth on the night stand, not moving he used his ancient magic to form a statue of him and Rogue, him giving her a motherly hug. 

Opening his mind he pushed his magic to do something else, the statue glowed and raised off the night stand, the earth turned into clear crystal. 

This was the message he wanted to leave... behind. 

He turned around and walked out the door, he needed to talk to Sammi before they left. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Teb and Angelo hugged goodbye. 

"I'm gonna miss you, Teb." Ange said and looked into her eyes. 

"Oh, Ange," she said and held him tighter, "I wanted to leave you a present, like a ring or something. I don't have anything like that," Teb sniffled, "but I fixed the painting. I ruined it before, I'm sorry, but I fixed it. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have ruined it to start with, I was just.." 

Angelo cut her off with a kiss. 

"Thank you, Chica." he said and slipped off his cross chain and put it on Teb. "I love you, Teb." 

"I love you too Angelo. I guess I'll see you later?" Teb smiled. 

"Yea Chica....later..." 

**teb**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi was sitting on Wolverine's bed with Jubilee next to her. She was trying not to cry, but it wouldn't stop. Jubilee gave her a hug and said, "I'm gonna miss you, sis." 

"Me, too." Sammi said as she hugged her tighter. Sammi looked over at Logan, who was digging in his closet. "What are you looking for?" She and Jubilee both turned to him as he came out of the closet. 

"Well, It's about time you came out of the closet." Sammi said with a smirk and Jubilee stifled a snicker. 

"Very funny, darlin'. If you weren't my daughter, I would gut you for that remark." He said holding something behind his back. 

"But I am, so you're stuck with me. What is behind you back?" Sammi said getting up and walking over to him. 

Logan looked at Jubilee and said, "Can you go down and get us two beers?" 

"Sure. I'll be right back." She said as she got up and ran out the door. 

"What gives? You gonna kill me or something?' Sammi asked with a smirk. 

"Naw, I just didn't want the kid to see me give you these, she always liked them." He said as he handed her a big box and one small one. 

"Presents? For what?" Sammi asked as she took the boxes from him. 

"So you don't forget your old man. I already have that picture of you and Jamar, so I wanted you to have something of me. Open them." He said, looking down at her as she sat back on the bed. 

Sammi opened the big box first to find, neatly wrapped in tissue paper, a black leather jacket, with a Canadian flag on one shoulder, and an X patch on the other. She held it up and said, "Wow! this is .... You know what? There are no words to tell you how much this means to me. Thank you." She said as she got up and put it on and leaned down and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. 

"I had it made for a kid that I wanted to have one day, but then you came along and I found out that I already have that kid, and I couldn't be prouder." He said as he gave her a hug and started to cry. Of course, hearing the Great Wolverine cry caused Sammi to start again. 

After a few moments they pulled back and smiled at each other. 

"Now, for the other one... and no crying this time." He said as he pointed at the smaller box. 

Sammi opened the box to find three gold necklaces with writing hanging on a pendent. She picked them up one at a time and read. FireFox. Dragon. and Jedi. She looked up at him and said, "For all of us?" 

"Yeah, You all are my family. I got Kitty and Jubilee ones just like it, so you three get them as well. Here, let me help you put it on." He stood and came around behind her and put on her necklace. He kissed the top of her head and said, "I don't say good bye. I just say see ya around, So I'll see ya around, kid." 

Sammi turned to say something, but he was gone. She took a deep breath and got up and placed a note on his dresser, and turned and left. 

As she walked down the hallway, she told Jubes that she should give the beers to Remy and Bobby. And she left to find Jamar and Jonas. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Bobby, I...um...have to go to the powder room. Amanda said she was NOT going to make any pit stops so we should go before we leave." Athena joked. 

She paused for just a moment to look at him. He was smiling, and that's how she wanted to remember him. She walked quickly to the bathroom. Once there, she climbed out the window. Silently she made her way to where she was to meet the others. She felt terrible for lying to Bobby, but she just couldn't say good bye. She decided it would be better not to say it. 

Deep inside she thought that if she didn't say it, then it wouldn't happen. If she didn't say it then even if she went back to her world, she wouldn't have to remember leaving Bobby. She felt her heart begin to pound ferociously. She could hear the blood rushing in her ears. She started to feel dizzy, but she knew she had to go on. 

**snowbaby**

**_~Amanda's Room~_**

Amanda and Jamar had finished their conversation, and the other members of VX had begun to file in. 

"So what's the plan, fearless leader?" Jonas asks as Ryan and Creed walk in. 

"The plan is that we're going to do some last minute training in the Danger Room." There were groans all around until her mind touched all of theirs except Sabretooth. 

"The X-Men think we should be prepared. What we're really preparing for is the prospect of stowaways or tag-alongs." 

Sammi and Jamar knew exactly what she was talking about. /Dad, Gambit, and Bobby weren't happy about the situation./ 

Amanda then turns to Sabretooth. "Mr. Creed, do you think you could keep them busy and meet us later in the Danger Room?" 

Sabretooth begins to growl. 

"And no, we won't leave without you." Ryan squeezes his arm reassuringly. 

**_~Outside the Danger Room~_**

Jamar waits for Creed. As he paces back again, he hears Creed coming, followed by a large boom. 

"JEEZE, she said keep them busy, not bring the house down!" Jamar yells as they step into the Danger Room. 

"Do your thing, Jedi!" Amanda says, before being surround by the purple flames of the vortex. 

**_~Blackbird II~_**

"Hey, Creed... you sure you know how to fly one of these things?" 

"No sweat. Next stop, Sinny's place." 

**Chaos**


	31. Reality Bites-Part 31

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel Characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 31

**

**_~On the Blackbird II~_**

Ryan had not been this nervous since she got her first piercing. It was a combination of fright and excitement; her stomach was turning circles. 

"You'll be fine frail. Just remember what I told you, stay close to me and I won't let anything happen to you." Sabretooth said, clutching Ryan's hand. 

The whole thing came on so sudden, it seemed. He didn't think he was ready to let her go yet. He momentarily thought about asking her to stay with him again, but put the thought aside. She deserves better then me, he thought. 

Ryan took a deep breath and looked around the Blackbird. She saw the faces of all her new friends, and thought of how some of them may not make it home. She looked at Victor and kissed him passionately. 

"What was that for?" He said with a goofy grin on his face. I'm gonna miss those kisses, he thought. 

"I may not get the chance to say goodbye, so I wanted to do it now." 

**Le Fae**

"Though I find your romance interesting, Ryan, I need you and Victor to focus, please." stated Amanda. 

"We heard ya, frail. Just keep talkin'. Yer gettin' more preachy then Chromedome." growled Sabertooth. 

Amanda glared at him, "I'll keep that in mind, Scooby. Anyway, like I was saying; Cara, Jamar, Leilee and myself are the only ones I want to go up against Anon. The rest of you will help Sammi defeat Sinister. Correct me if I'm wrong, Victor, but I have a feeling that Sinister will have his own back-up." 

"Ya can count on it, frail." Victor confirmed. 

"Right. Now, I know that none of us here are truly ready for this, but I know we can do it. We have to, there is no other choice. We need to work as a team and rely on each other." Amanda took a deep breath and continued, " The odds are that when we complete this mission, we'll return home. The problem is that when that happens there is almost a 100% chance that we will not remember any of this. I don't know if that's true, but we have to face that possibility. I know that is hard to deal with because, not only would we forget each other, but the X-men as well. We all knew that this was a possibility we might have to deal with when we started interacting with them, but we have to deal with it. It's tough not saying goodbye, but sometimes, it's better." 

Amanda looked at the faces of her team, and knew she couldn't ask for better friends. She knew they would make it and would meet again despite what happened. "Well, let's get ready to rock and roll, people." she said. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hope, sitting in the back of the Black Bird II, thinks of what transpired before this final leg of this journey. 

It was rather fun helping to get even with the prankster, Jamar. The lighthearted play of the group was a good thing before going into battle, filling everyone with positive energies. 

Hank laughed wholeheartedly when Jamar was dropped into the swimming pool full of whipped cream. He even didn't mind getting dropped into the lake. Hope was able to get Hank and herself dry. When the call came to meet up at the Blackbird II, Hank walked her to the plane and before she got on she gave him a big hug and a kiss on the cheek, slipping a blue forget-me-not into his hand. At the same time she slipped the flower into his hand, he slipped something into her hand as well..... 

Hope looks at the box she holds in her hand, then she opens it. Inside is a delicate gold necklace with a forget-me-not pendant made of sapphires. She puts it on, smiling. Hank is definitely not someone she will ever forget. 

Hope looks out of the window at the sea below, listening to Amanda's plan. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria looks around at the others of Vision X, holding onto the feather she had gotten in her dream/nightmare. Her other hand opens and closes in anticipation of the upcoming battle. She hopes that all goes well. She closes her eyes, going over what Sean had taught her. Things have certainly changed since she and Amanda first arrived in the X-men dimension. She smiles at Amanda, thinking of how much Amanda has grown, and how good a leader she has become. 

Maria adjusts the black felt cowboy hat to a more solid fit. She tucks the feather in the hatband of her hat, then checks to make certain everything was in its proper place. 

(Goggles on tight. Good, I guess I'm ready.) 

She nods at Amanda and sits back to relax as best as she can. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara strapped herself into her seat, and looked around her. Sabretooth had taken his place in the pilot seat, working the controls, and Jamar was sitting in the copilot seat... Cara felt a little lonely without him. Cara watched as the rest of the team strapped themselves in, and the Blackbird II took off out of the hidden cliffhanger. She sighed...they had just begun their journey towards an unknown destination, and an uncertain future. 

Amanda had told them they would probably not remember ever meeting the X-Men, or each other. Cara looked once more around her, her eyes lingering on all the faces of her newfound friends and teammates. They had been through so much together...battles, parties, newfound loves, deaths of loved ones, and their fond returns. How could she go on without them? 

Cara looked once more at her own love...Jamar. When she had first come here, Cara had never in her wildest dreams believed that she would find love...but she had. If they survived this ordeal and made it back home, the possibility that she would no longer remember Jamar tore at Cara's heart. She almost wished that they wouldn't succeed. Almost wished that they could just fly off into the sunset, and disappear forever. Almost, but not quite. 

Cara knew that completing this mission was imperative...and nothing, not even her own feelings would interfere with what she saw as her duty. She would put everything she had into this battle... and hope that they would win. 

Cara thought back to that night, not so long ago, when she stood by the pool and first met Zeklos. 

"You two are kindred spirits I think." Zeklos had said, "If he had not met you in this world, he surely would have met you in another." 

/I hope you're right, Zeklos. I hope and pray that you are right./ Cara thought, as they flew over the wild sea below. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Hours Later, Sinister's Island~_**

Ryan leaned over Sabretooth to look out the cockpit window. The island was coming up fast, and the plane was beginning to land. Once again the butterflies came back to Ryan's stomach. She watched nervously as they came closer to the island. 

"You better take your seat, frail. We are going to be landing soon." 

"Yeah, sure thing, Scooby." Ryan said, still staring at the island. She slowly turned and went back to her seat. The others all strapped themselves in and braced for landing on the island. 

As soon as the Blackbird II landed, everyone filed out of the plane. Each one looking nervously around the island to make sure no danger was waiting for them in the shadows. 

Victor sniffed the air. "All clear," He said and placed himself in front of Ryan. Effectively making himself a shield for her in case he missed something. 

"Alright, you know the drill people. Cara, Jamar, and Leilee, follow me. The rest of you are with Sammi." Amanda stated, and then added "And please, be careful...." 

The group headed in the direction they knew Sinister and Anon would be. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara and Jamar began to follow Leilee and Amanda, but Cara held back a little. She took hold of Jamar's hand, stopping him. Jamar looked at Cara questioningly. 

Cara reached up and pulled Jamar's head down to meet hers, and she kissed him lightly. "For good luck, love." she said softly, then smiled and winked at him. 

Cara took Jamar's hand, and they began to hustle to catch up with Amanda and the others. While they were running, Cara began to recite in her head, /Bonzai, Samurai...Geronimo, let's GO, and BLOW!/ 

A strange look crossed Jamar's face. /What was that?/ he asked Cara on the mindlink. 

Cara blushed...she'd forgotten about the mindlink. /It's just a silly little war cry that I made up...sorry./ she answered back. 

Jamar grinned, and they continued after Amanda. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

The group entered the large building with little resistance. A few guards with pistols where not much of a match for the group, and everyone felt they were walking into a trap. 

"This is too easy," Sammi said, as she led the group down the corridor. Suddenly a rumble started below their feet, followed by the sound of gears turning. The floor opened up below and each member of the team fell down a separate shaft. In a flash, the entire team was separated. 

Sabretooth, like a cat, landed on his feet. He growled low in his throat. He sniffed the air a little but couldn't catch Ryan's scent. Perfect, he thought, how am I supposed to protect her if I can't find her. He began walking down the new hallway when he heard the scream. 

"Victor, help me please!" 

It was Ryan, he knew her voice and she was in trouble. He ran down the corridor to catch a glimpse of her being dragged off around a corner. As he turned the corner he saw a shadowy figure pulling her. 

"Victor, please save me!" She screamed to him. 

He ran after her, ready to kill whoever was hurting her. Ryan was pulled around another corner and then Victor heard a door slam. When he rounded the corner there was only one door. He opened the door and stepped in, his claws bared and ready to attack. The door slammed shut behind him and the room was pitch black. Victor sniffed the air and but couldn't catch Ryan's scent. He was tricked. A figure stepped out of the shadows and removed it's hood. 

"Look into my eyes," The figure said, and as much as Victor tried to fight it, he couldn't. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Ryan had morphed herself into a cat and was walking down the hall. She figured that it would be easy for her to get around this way undetected, plus her senses would be at their best. She sniffed and saw Victor standing by a door. 

"Victor! I was worried that I wouldn't find you." She said as she morphed back into human form. 

"You ain't that lucky, frail." Sabretooth said as he smiled in a rather Cheshire cat way at her. 

"Lets go find the others." 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi quickly did a tumble as she landed. When she got to her feet, she thought,/Last time I ever curse Michelle for making me take gymnastics./ She looked around and didn't see anything. /Damn, where did everyone go?/ She thought. 

She tried to telepathically call them, but nothing. /I'm on my own./ She thought as she grabbed and tightened her fist around the necklace that Jonas gave her, and the one her father gave her. 

She started walking down a dark hallway and thought, /Well, if this is a trap, then why don't I let them know where I am?/ She lit a spark on the tip of her finger. She didn't unsheathe her claws yet, /save them for later./ She thought. 

The hallway kept turning, but it just kept going on. She heard a noise up ahead, and slowly walked toward it. It was a body on the ground. She tapped it with her foot and it turned. It was Wolverine! 

/NO! It can't be. He's home. Its a trick./ She thought to herself as she reached down with one hand and felt for a pulse. 

As her hand touched the body's neck, it hand quickly grabbed her. She quickly countered with a right cross and the head sank to the ground unconsciousness. /Serves you right./ 

She got up and quickly ran down the hall, but again it didn't end. She stopped in her tracks. /This is TOO much like Labyrinth. Maybe if I..? She thought as she turned to one side of the wall and felt along it. /There it is./ And she pressed the button on the wall and a passage door opened to reveal another hallway. She heard someone coming so she stood as close to the wall as she could til she saw the person. 

**Jonas?** She telepathically sent to him. 

**Sammi? Where are you?** He sent back. 

**About five feet in front of you.** She said. He quickly found her and grabbed her into a hug. She kissed him and said, "Now we have to find the others." 

He put her on the floor and asked, "How did you get here?" 

"Sinister really has to work on his technique. It was a secret passage. Let's see, there should be another one around here somewhere." 

**jubilee_79**

**_~Amanda's Group~_**

Amanda was beginning to worry. She had telepathically lost track of Sammi's group. Worst of all, some of the brain wave patterns were slightly erratic at last contact. She knew she couldn't lead her team back, but she was still worried about them. She prayed that they were all alright. 

"Everyone stay close. I know she around here. Are you ready, Cara?" Amanda asked. 

"Yes." Cara replied and Jamar squeezed her hand. 

"Leilee, are you clear on what you have to do?" Amanda questioned. 

"Yes, but I don't see what that is going to do." she replied. 

"Just trust me. I don't know what is going on with the others, but we have to succeed before we can help them. Now, Jamar and I will go onto the psychic plane to draw her out. Believe me, she wants to destroy us in person. I need you two to be ready when she does." 

The two girls nodded. Amanda turned to Jamar and he nodded as well. Both slowly let their minds wander onto the psychic plane. Amanda saw the plane materialize before her, and saw Jamar besides her. 

(What do we do now, fearless leader?) 

(We get her attention. Challenge her skills. Be your annoying self.) 

(No problem. Hey, annoying psychopath! Come and get me. Hey! Psycho-nut! Are you out here?) Jamar mentally shouted. 

(I'm sure she heard you. She's here. I can feel her.) 

(Do not let your guard down, fair lady.) advised Thanagar. 

(Yes, lass. She is clever. She will use every trick possible to destroy you.) warned Azmaru. 

Jamar looked at Amanda strangely before asking, (Were those the...?) 

(Yes, now pay atten.....) 

A psychic bolt came straight at the two of them. Amanda barely managed to block it with her psychic bow. Jamar jumped back and prepared for a fight . 

Anon appeared before them. She was glaring at them. She knew they had come to destroy them, but she had other plans. She was going to destroy these two before she went after her sister's protectee. The physical form of Anon watched the two girls from above. 

Well, we got her attention, Amanda thought. She quickly notified Cara and Leilee to look for Anon's physical form, and that Jamar and her would keep Anon busy. She only hoped that the two of them would succeed, because she didn't know how long she and Jamar could hold Anon. 

Amanda once again ignited her weapon and attacked. 

**A.C.**

Taking his cue from Amanda, Jamar lets loose with a volley of psychic arrows meant to keep Anon off balance. 

"Well, we got her on the run now." 

"I wouldn't be so overconfident, Jedi." Anon screams, unleashing a bolt of energy that pierces Jamar's shoulder. 

"You okay!?" Amanda asks. 

"PEACHY!!!" Even through the sarcasm, the pain is evident. 

**_~Elsewhere~_**

Cara stops, dropping to her knees as she feels Jamar's pain. 

/Keep going! I'm okay./ Jamar urges Cara through the mindlink. 

Getting up, she continues to run full tilt. 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Maria looked around as she turned invisible. The long dark hallway felt eerie, with only a few candles lighting the way. Even in her invisible mode, she felt helpless since she didn't really have an advantage. 

"Hello?" she whispered softly as she crept around. 

"I hate this." she muttered as she felt around for a flashlight. "Here." 

There was a click as she turned on the beam of light. "Okay, I'm lost and alone in a mad scientist's island and I'm talking to myself. Swell." 

A faint flicker of color caught her eye as she saw a magazine on the ground. 

"I didn't know Sinister read comics." she said to herself in amusement as she looked down at the cover. "Wait a second... X-Men?!" 

She knelt down and flipped through the pages. It was the issue about the X-Men being lost in Skrull world. 

"No, no.... no. Of course, if Sinister did enter our world, and accidentally saw this... no no... he might... would he even care?" She rolled up the magazine and ran off. "I gotta find the others!" 

**Maria Cline**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara and Leilee continued running, searching for the elusive Anon. There wasn't much time left...Cara could feel both Jamar and Amanda weakening. 

An evil laugh, beautiful but cold, sounded from above and echoed throughout the near-empty caverns. Cara and Leilee both stopped, and looked up. There, directly ahead and hovering in midair, was the cloaked figure of Anon. 

"Were you looking for me? You fools, don't you realize? You are exactly where I want you...for my powers are one hundred times stronger in person, than they are long distance." she said in her cold silvery voice, as she floated down to stand face to face with Leilee and Cara. 

Anon smiled a cruel smile behind her mask. Jamar's pain from the psychic blast, and the resulting fear from Cara and the others had given her just the boost she needed. 

Anon spoke to Amanda and Jamar on the psychic plane, ~If you thought what your teammates saw before were nightmares, just wait. Because when I get through with them this time, they won't know which is the ceiling and which is the floor, let alone who are their real enemies and who are their real friends. And you won't be able to help them.~ 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi and Jonas opened another secret doorway, stepped through and began to follow the winding corridor. Suddenly, there was a disorienting flash...the world suddenly seemed to twist, turn and bend around them both. Everything around them began to waver, as if they were stuck at the bottom of a deep swimming pool. Manifestations of their teammates appeared, running alongside them both. 

Sammi saw Cara run by, and grabbed her. "Cara, where's Amanda? What's going on?" she asked the girl. 

Cara suddenly turned on Sammi, and said, "Oh, Hi SIS, I've got something for ya..." she said in a sarcastic tone of voice. 

Then with an evil gleam in her eyes and a cold smile on her lips, she punched Sammi as hard as she could. Sammi went flying through the air, and slammed against a wall. 

"Now for your boyfriend...Hey Jonas, here's a little present from me...sorry it ain't wrapped..." Cara said, as she let loose with a pink fire blast, straight at Jonas. 

Sammi screamed, and lunged at Jonas, trying to push him out of the way. Sammi slammed into Jonas, and they both tumbled into a wall. 

"Sammi! What did you just do that for? What happened?" asked Jonas in a surprised and shocked tone of voice. 

"Cara just tried...just tried..." Sammi started to say, then she looked around her and realized that Cara was nowhere to be found. Had she just been an illusion then? But she had seemed so real! "It was Anon, she made me believe that Cara had just tried to kill you." Sammi replied as she rubbed her head. 

Jonas hugged Sammi close to him...he'd been standing right there, and had not been able to protect her. He sighed...he would try all the more harder to keep her safe. Just then, Jonas stiffened...he could sense something was wrong. A mist rose up, and they both began to hear voices...the voices of their teammates, and they were all talking in unison. 

"Boo! You fools! You're nothing but freaks...you're nothing special. Did you really think you could win this battle? As if. You know nothing of what you are dealing with. You two are rubbish; the trash that the rest of us are going to have to take out. You never should have been a part of the team. What a waste of good uniforms." spoke the many voices of their teammates. 

Sammi and Jonas tried to block out the sound, but it echoed and reverberated throughout the corridor, getting louder and louder with each word. Suddenly, Jonas and Sammi both felt a presence behind them. They roared and snapped around, ready to take out whoever was there. 

"HEY! Hang on, you two!" came the surprised voice of Maria. She became visible once again, and continued saying, "What's wrong? Why'd you just try to take me out?" 

Sammi shook her head. The voices were still there, repeating the same words over and over, and she was having trouble concentrating on what Maria was saying. "What do you mean? Can't you hear them?" she asked, surprised. 

"Hear what?" asked Maria. Other than falling down through the trap door and getting separated from the others, she had experienced nothing out of the ordinary. /Oh, I wonder...could it be because of this feather? Whoa, that means that it really IS protecting me. Cool!/ she thought. 

"Hey, you guys, I want to try something...I want both of you to each put one hand on my shoulders...I know it sounds strange, but just try it, okay?" Maria said to Sammi and Jonas. 

Sammi and Jonas did as she asked...immediately, the voices stopped, and the mist disappeared. 

"How did you do that?" Sammi asked Maria. 

"I can't say...let's just go see if we can find the others, okay?" Maria said. She knew that if she told anyone about the feather, then Anon would know...and be able to take it away from them. So she remained silent. 

Maria clicked the flashlight back on, then she, Sammi and Jonas, continued on their way through the corridor in search of the others. 

**Rainfall**

**_~Astral Plane~_**

"So what's the plan now fearless leader? She keeps pushing us back." 

"We do some major damage!" She yells as psionic spears and arrows hurl at Anon and rebound off of her shield. 

"This is useless. I'm outta here." Jamar says before disappearing. 

"Where are you going?" Amanda asks, but it's too late... he's already gone. 

"Ha ha ha hah! What's wrong little psion, scared? Your friend has left you... now you will die!" 

"I don't think so!" Jamar says as he reappears behind her, shoving a psychic spear through her body. 

"Did you kill her?" 

"Nope... but she'll wish I had when she wakes up. Amanda, I wonder if there's a law that says super-villains must be cocky." 

With the help of Amanda's protectors, Amanda and Jamar construct a cage for Anon's mind. Jamar and Amanda plop down in the middle of the Astral Plane, exhausted. 

"How are the others doing?" Amanda focuses her attention elsewhere, picking up Maria, Jonas, and Sammi. 

"Well Fire Fox, Sonique and Dragon are on their way to our last known coordinates. Mirage and Sabretooth are coming in on the opposite side of us. Echoes and Bliss are still searching for Anon's physical body, with no luck. Hope, Solitaire, and Teb are still unaccounted for." 

"Let's go search for them." 

Jamar begins to stand, his psychic form wavering as does the cage around Anon. Amanda grabs his hand and pulls him down. 

"The best thing you can do for everyone is to rest long enough to heal yourself. I cannot maintain this cage without you, so we must hold on until Echoes and Bliss find Anon's body." 

"What bugs me is where is Sinister while all of this is going on? I've got a bad feeling, and it's getting worse." 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

A screen winks out as Sinister watches the members of Vision-X scramble around the tunnels of his island. 

"All is as it should be." 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi, Jonas and Maria all walked down the hallway. 

"Doesn't this ever end?" Maria asked. 

"In a way, watch." Sammi said as she moved over to the wall. 

She felt around, then found the button and opened the secret door that was behind them. 

"See." She pointed at the door and Maria's jaw dropped. 

"How did you know?" 

"I've seen too many movies back home. This maze is like the one in Labyrinth." She led the way through the door. Immediately after setting foot into the other hall, Sammi smelled someone. She moved her hands to stop Jonas and Maria. 

Sammi sniffed around, then she realized who it was. 

**Teb?** She telepathically called. 

"Sammi? Is that you?" Teb's voice wavered a little as she spoke. 

"Yeah, Its me. Hold still. We're on our way." Sammi said as she, Maria and Jonas made their way to where Teb was. 

**jubilee_79**

Teb did as she was told. Sammi followed her nose and opened another doorway. 

"Teb!" 

Teb turned around, "SAMMI!!!" She gave Sammi a hug "Jonas, Maria!, I'm so glad you're here. Do you know where the others are?" 

"We're looking for them, and for a way out of this maze," Maria answered. 

"Yea, I hate being lost by myself." 

"Hey, guys... be quiet..." Sammi interrupted. 

Teb stopped talking and everyone looked at Sammi. 

"Do you guys hear that?" 

**teb**

Sammi, Maria, Teb and Jonas rounded another corner... 

"Damn, Sammi, we are only rats in a maze here." Jonas said and stopped. "I bet Sinister is having the laugh of his life watching us running around his sick little game." 

Sammi turned around, shocked at seeing Jonas this angry. 

"Let's do some serious damage." Jonas raised his hands, they changed color and his body turned into scales, with an easy strike, the wall gave away. 

"Pick a direction... we are getting out of this, RIGHT NOW." Sammi smiled. 

"Yeah, let's break the rules here." fireworks started to play around her. 

Maria smiled and was ready to scream at the top of her lugs. 

"Let's go." Teb said, and turned her hands into gigantic sledgehammers. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sinister grunted, this was no fun. He enjoyed watching them, he didn't want to take them on just yet... he pushed a button and you could see a small army of his henchmen running into the maze. 

**Admiral**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hope finds herself landing on a pile of sacks in the corner of a room. A dim burning light casts eerie shadows on the wall, making weird distorted shapes. After cautiously looking around, Hope realizes that she is in some sort of supply room. Quickly she moves to the door and opens it very carefully, peering into the hall. Seeing that there isn't anyone nearby, she steps out. 

/Wonder where the others are at. For that matter, where am I at in Sinister's Hall of Evil?/ Hope looks left then she looks right. /Hmmnnn... I think I need a guide to get through this./ 

Hope rubs her hands together, like she is making a ball out of air. As she does this, she whispers, 

Oh this hall is dark and grey  
Little ball show me the way. 

Take me through this lonely site  
Glowing, bluish, floating light. 

To the others, please do go  
guide me from this place of woe. 

Hope blows gently in the palm of her hand, and a glowing blue ball of light forms. It moves from her hand, hovers for a moment, then it moves down the hall to the right. It rounds first one corner then another, going in an arc, then straight, moving through a couple of doors. There is a flash of light as she comes out into yet another hall. 

"Don't you come any closer, Mystique, or I'm going to barbeque you." Hope hears a familiar voice. 

"Athena? It's me, Hope." 

"Hope???" Athena moves closer, hands at the ready to throw another blast. 

Athena relaxes, seeing that it was indeed Hope. She looks over at the floating ball of light. 

"What's that?" nodding over to it. 

"Oh, that's my guide. Now lets see if we can find Sammi, Jonas, Maria and Teb, before Sinister's minions find us." 

Athena nods and Hope whispers to the ball and it heads in the direction of their other teammates. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara gasped as the figure of Anon, standing before her, suddenly disappeared. Leilee touched her arm. 

"That wasn't Anon...I scanned her mind, and couldn't find anything there...it was just an illusion." Leilee said. 

"Yeah, I kind of figured that as well... I couldn't sense any emotions from her... not that Anon, anyway. Although, I am picking up some very strong emotions from the real Anon. They seem to be coming from this direction. Come on... we've got to hurry, Amanda and Jamar's control over Anon is slipping." Cara said, as she began running down a new corridor, with Leilee right behind. 

"You know, this maze looks a lot like the one in Labyrinth...So, if you meet any worms that say to go one way, just be sure to go in the OPPOSITE DIRECTION!" Cara said, as she grinned at Leilee. 

Leilee laughed, and they continued running. 

**_~Astral Plane~_**

"You fools...you can't keep me in this cage forever, you're too weak. None of you know my true power... but that will change. When I get through with you, I will feast off of your friends, and then the X-Men. After them, the entire world will feel my wrath...and your world as well." Anon said from her cage. 

Just then, Anon concentrated, and let out a huge concussive blast of psionic energy around her, rattling and weakening the cage. Amanda and Jamar both cried out in pain as the wave of energy hit them. They both had to redouble their efforts and concentration to keep the cell intact. 

/Cara...hurry...we don't have much time left./ Jamar sent a message through the mindlink to Cara. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Cara and Leilee had rounded a corner, when an extreme wave of angry emotion crashed down on Cara. Cara gasped, and fell to her knees. The pain was so intense, Cara could hardly breathe. 

_/Cara...hurry...we don't have much time left./_ Cara heard Jamar through the mindlink. 

/Don't worry, Jamar, we're almost there... I can feel the emotions from Anon, they are getting stronger. We're very near to where she is... just hold on a little longer. I'm not about to lose you./ Cara sent back. 

Leilee helped Cara stand on her feet, and they continued running in the direction that Cara felt the emotions coming from. They rounded another turn, and found themselves in a dead end. 

"No, we can't have come the wrong way, there's got to be an opening somewhere..." Leilee said, as she began to search the walls. Cara helped her. 

"Aha! Found it!" Leilee said, as her hand hit a hidden switch, located behind a loose brick. 

Part of the wall from the opposite side of the dead end opened...revealing a small, dark corridor. Cara and Leilee stepped inside, wary that it could be a trap. They followed the long corridor, and it opened into a large spacious round room. The room was lit only by candles, giving it an unearthly tone. Cara tried to enter the room, but was thrown back from the opening...there was an invisible force field in place. Leilee helped Cara stand. 

The two of them walked back to the opening, careful not to touch the force field, and they scanned the interior of the room with their eyes. Once their eyes grew accustomed to the limited light, Cara and Leilee focused upon Anon. In the exact middle of the room was a simple mat, surrounded by candles...and upon this mat, lay the cloaked figure of Anon. 

Both Leilee and Cara tried to focus their powers on Anon, but their powers were blocked by the force field. Cara angrily slammed her fist against the force field, her punch harmlessly thrown off of it. They couldn't do anything unless they reached Anon, and they couldn't do that with the force field intact, and neither of them could remove it. They needed help. 

/Jamar, we found Anon, but we can't reach her... there's a force field, and neither of us can remove it... is there anyone you can send to help us?/ Cara sent on the mindlink. 

/Hang on, Cara, we've located Hope and Solitaire... they're close to your location... we'll send them to you./ Jamar replied. Cara could feel the tiredness in his telepathic voice. 

Just then, Leilee stiffened, and grabbed Cara's arm. Cara looked at her questioningly. Leilee didn't say a word, she only pointed to a corner of the darkened room. Cara looked, and gasped. For what she was staring at was the Stone figure of Arac. 

**Rainfall**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Amanda refocused her energy on her attack. At the same time, she sent message to her team explaining the plan. It was last minute, but it was all she could think of. Leilee and she would run defense and let Anon come after them. This would allow Cara and Jamar to strike as one and take Anon out. First, Amanda had to buy some time to get things set. 

Focusing all her power into a ball as she had in the garden after Jonas's death. She fortified the energy... not with anger this time, but with love and hope. She thought of her friends, Charles, the X-men, and her world. She used those precious feelings of joy and love to increase her powers. 

Jamar was trying to take on Anon, while the witch laughed at his attempt. She threw him away from her like one might swat a fly away. She turned to face Amanda, but she was too late. 

Amanda launched the energy at Anon. She tried to shield herself from it, but the power of the positive energy was to much. Her psychic form disintegrated under the power. The effort left Amanda exhausted, and Jamar came towards her. 

(Smooth move, oh fearless one.) 

(Thanks, but that will keep her down for only a few minutes. We all have to be ready by then.) 

(Do you think it will work?) 

(It has to.) 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

"Can you smell them yet?" Mirage asked, looking towards Sabretooth. 

"Not yet frail. We will find them soon enough." Sabretooth said, still grinning madly at Mirage. 

"Would you please stop doing that? You're freaking me out." She exclaimed. Ever since they had been separated, he had been acting differently. 

"Sorry frail. You just look so tasty." 

"Now is not the time." 

They continued down the corridor when Sabretooth stopped and looked at the wall. "Right here." He said, pushing a button on the side. A doorway opened to reveal Sammi, Jonas, Maria and Teb on the other side. 

"There you are. We have been looking for you." Jonas said, relieved to have found two more members of the team. 

"Yeah, glad to have you back," Sammi said looking warily at Sabretooth. Something about him didn't seem right; he seemed different. 

"We ain't alone frail." Sabretooth said, pointing down the hall behind the group. "We are going to have visitors real soon." 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

As Hope and Solitaire are following their "guide", and getting near to where they think their missing teammates are, Hope and Solitaire get a message from Jamar. 

(Hope, Solitaire; Echoes and Bliss need your help. You should be near where they are at, please go to them.) 

Hope looks over at Solitaire, "Looks like we are needed elsewhere. I hope everything is all right with Sammi, Jonas, Maria and Teb." 

Solitaire nods. Hope calls their guide back to her and whispers to it. The ball flickers for a moment, then it moves down another hallway to another passage way. There are three doors to choose from, but the blue ball of light moves unerringly to the middle one. Hope tries the door, but finds that it is locked. Hope gets ready to cast another spell, but Solitaire stops her. 

"Here, let me do it," says Solitaire. 

Hope nods and moves away. Solitaire places her hand on the door and concentrates on it, soaking in the heat from the door. With precise accuracy, Solitaire aims at the door. The doorknob, plus the lock, turns a bright red then to white, and then melts away. 

Solitaire then opens the door with her foot, finding yet another corridor but a short one, lighted by candles. The blue ball of light moves through the hallway, its glow adding weird strange shapes to the dancing shadows on the wall made by the candles. 

Hope and Solitaire get to where Cara and Leilee are. 

"Jamar said that you needed some help, what did you need?" asks Solitaire. 

"We need some help in getting through that," pointing at the force field surrounding Anon. 

"Do you think that you can do it?" Asks Cara. 

Hope and Solitaire look at each other and then nod. "We sure can," They both say in unison. 

Hope waves her hand and the blue light disappears. Then she calls upon her mystical powers while Solitaire concentrates, focusing on the force field. 

Hope says to Cara and Leilee, "You may want to step back, don't want you to get caught in a backlash." 

Cara and Leilee do so. Hope and Solitaire attack the force field at the same time. 

**Dreamweaver**


	32. Reality Bites-Part 32

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 32

**

A beam of light shines out from Hope's hands, while Solitaire concentrates on the heat that the force field is giving out, directing it back at it. Beads of perspiration begin to form on the foreheads of both Hope and Solitaire, as they concentrate on focusing their powers. 

Finally, when it seemed that the force field was going to be the victor, it wavers.. there is small explosion, sending Hope and Solitaire back a few feet. They are stunned for a moment from the backlash, but the force field is down. Anon is unharmed and the candles are blown out, but only for a moment... then they relight by themselves. 

Cara and Leilee run over to check on them. 

"Hope, Solitaire, are you all right?" 

Hope and Solitaire sit up after a moment, then look at each other and smile. 

"Well, the force field is down," Says Hope. "But I'm afraid that things are not over yet. Amanda just informed us of a plan." 

Hope and Solitaire get up, dusting themselves off, then move close to Cara and Leilee so no one else can listen in. 

Hope says quietly, "Amanda wants Leilee and her to run defense, and let Anon come after them. Then Cara and Jamar strike as one to take Anon out. It's a good plan... Solitaire and I are going to have our hands full ourselves, I think we are going to have some company soon." 

Solitaire moves to where she and Hope had came in, and looks out into the hallway. Quickly she moves back to the others and nods. 

"Let's get going before it gets crowded in here," says Solitaire. 

Hope nods and heads out, with Solitaire calling back to Cara and Leilee, "Good luck.. we're all going to need it." 

And they exit the chamber, leaving Cara and Leilee in the chamber with Anon and the stone statue of Arac. 

**Dreamweaver**

Cara could feel that Anon was weak and still wheeling from Amanda's attack. Now was the time to strike. Leilee went towards Anon, preparing to charge her. Anon merely used her powers to freeze her in her place. Leilee began to taunt Anon, screaming at her that she was pathetic and couldn't fight on her best day. 

On the psychic plane, Amanda was baiting Anon's astral image, teasing her that she was nothing but a wanna-be. Her protectors added to the fuel by stating how she was the most useless human that they had ever meet. This led to Amanda being hit by intense psychic energy, but she refused to fall down. 

She continued to get up, forcing Anon to use more energy. When all of Anon's energy and attention was focused on Amanda and Leilee, Jamar and Cara heard her voice telling them to strike. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Just as Hope and Solitaire get to the hallway, Hope hears a voice in her mind that she's only heard in her latest dreams. 

~Hope, you and Solitaire need to get back to Cara and Leilee. You are needed there more. Go quickly!~ 

Hope looks over at Solitaire. 

"We need to go back to Echoes and Bliss, now!" she says, turning back around running very fast. 

Solitaire heads back with her. They get back to Anon's chamber just as everything breaks loose! 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

**NOW!** orders Amanda. 

/Mind to Mind/ Heart to Heart/ 

Cara and Jamar link mind, body, and soul as a solar flare of psionic and empathic energies connect with Anon on two fronts. The first wave hitting her mind and the other piercing her heart. 

Anon screams from the intensity of the attack, shunting her mind back into her body where she collapses, spent of energy. 

**Chaos**

**_~Anon's Sanctuary~_**

Anon's eyes fall on the statue of Arac before rolling back into her head. KABOOOOOOOM!!! A very large explosion comes from the side of the room. There are bits of rock everywhere, and in the middle a man kneels, surrounded by smoke and dust particles. His head raises, allowing his glowing crimson eyes to pierce the veil of dirt and soot. 

"HEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRREEEEE'S JOHNNY!" He says, as he begins tossing kinetically charged rocks at the group of mutants. 

Solitaire absorbs the heat from the explosions and sends a long blast of searing energy back at Arac. While this is going on, Hope forms a shield to redirect some of the flaming rocks as Echoes splits into three. They all begin slinging rocks at the ceiling above Arac. The ceiling drops several large stones onto Arac, who quickly sidesteps them. 

"How much longer do you think we can keep this up?" Solitaire asks. 

"I'm not sure. Maybe we should..." Cara notices that the entire ceiling is beginning to turn pink as Arac runs off down a side tunnel. 

"Run for it!!!" She yells, grabbing the others and heading after Arac. 

**_~Tunnel #1~_**

"YOU'RE COMING WITH US, MIND WITCH!!!" One guard yells at Amanda, his gun coming to bare on her head. 

"That's no way to talk to a lady." Jedi says as a flaming scythe swings up, taking the mans arm off at the elbow. "I guess you won't be playing the piano for a while." He says as he steps toward Amanda. Amanda's eyes shift as she jumps up, producing a psi-bow and launching an arrow at Jedi's chest. It passes right through him and into the two guards behind him. 

Amanda grins, "Sucker." 

"I can't believe they fell for that." Their laughter is cut short as twenty more guards pour into the tunnel and begin firing. 

"What the hell? Does Sinney have factories pumping these guys out, or what?" 

"Uh...What? Let's get outta here!" Jamar tries to teleport but can't. They both set out running down a side tunnel. Amanda begins scanning for the others while plasma bursts erupt around them. 

**_~Tunnel #2~_**

Jonas roars. The more soldiers he destroys, the more there are to take their place. Ryan reverts back into her natural form and rolls out of the way as a wall explodes from a grenade. 

Coming out of the roll, Creed grabs her arm and begins running down a series of tunnels, coming into a central courtyard. 

**Chaos**

**_~Courtyard~_**

"We've gotta go back and help them." Ryan says, looking Sabretooth in the eyes. The smile across his face doesn't seem right, more toothy like a cat who's swallowed a canary. 

"Are you okay?" 

"You oughta be worryin' bout yerself, frail." He growls as he slashes Ryan from shoulder to stomach. She holds onto Sabretooth as her body slowly slumps to the ground. Sabretooth turns at a noise as he notices a crazy crimson eyed man running out of one of the tunnels. The man becomes hysterical when he sees Creed. 

"JEEZE!!! HOW MANY OF YOU DO I HAVE TO KILL TODAY?" Ripping a pipe from the wall he charges it, throwing the spear as Creed pounces, but too late. The spear connects, going through his body and exploding... ripping him apart and atomizing him until there is nothing but a smoking husk. 

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Ryan screams before unconsciousness overtakes her. Arac looks around as members of Vision X exit the tunnel, followed by several squads of Sinister's goons. 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jonas was the first through the doorway, and saw what the guy with the red eyes did to Sabertooth. Sammi came up behind him and saw Ryan lying on the ground, then she saw Arac. 

"Dragon, you, Sonique and Teb check on Ryan. I got him." Sammi said as she took a step towards Arac. 

Jonas grabbed her arm, and telepathically asked, /Are you sure?/ 

/Yes. I have a few things to TALK to him about. I'll be fine./ Sammi said as she smiled at him. 

Joans and the others tended to Ryan, and Sammi advanced on Arac. 

"Long time." She said as she got in a defensive stance. 

"You missed me, sweety?" Arac said as he did the same. 

"Oh, just about as much as a toothache." She shot back as they started to circle each other. She knew she only had to hurt him enough to be able to heal him. If she hurt him too much, she would end up hurting Cara. 

"I don't feel like dancing, Let's fight!" Arch said as he launched himself at her. Sammi side stepped and he hit the wall and fell. She quickly jumped on his back and had him pinned. She opened her mind and entered his. 

**_~Arac's Mind~_**

Sammi's astral form floated through his and Cara's memories. When she grabbed onto his, she started to chant. 

"Hate and anger leave,  
Let only love and heart succeed." 

When she noticed the memories of Anger and hate start to fade she exited his mind. She found herself still on his back but he was passed out. 

"I hope you were right about this as well, Harmony." She said to herself as she got up and went over to the others. 

"She's bleeding so much. How are we going to stop it?" Maria asked as Teb and Jonas were applying pressure. 

"The healing factors in the vaccine should start taking affect now." Sammi said as she came up behind them. "See?" She pointed at the wound on her throat. It was healing as they spoke. 

Jonas turned his head to her and looked over at Arac. "Is he out?" 

"For a little bit, but now we have to deal with the goons that are coming from behind us." She sniffed the air and said, "There are ten, and Arac is waking up. You guys stall them and I'll get Arac to help." She went back to Arac and kneeled down and said,"You have only two choices, and that is to help us or you are going to die with us. Which do you choose?" 

**jubilee_79**

**_~X-Mansion~_**

Xavier and the various X-men had finished cleaning the mess that Sabertooth had left. He had learned quickly where to place the bombs to avoid injury, but caused a great deal of damage. 

Wolverine was not happy. "When I find that scum bag, I'm gonna..." 

"That's enough, Logan. We all know whose plan Sabertooth was following." Replied Cyclops as he turn towards his mentor. 

Xavier was gazing out the window, searching on the astral plane for any sign of Vision X. He knew that Amanda had purposely made it so that the X-men couldn't find them. Xavier was worried for all them. He was afraid that some of them would not survive this battle. He knew his X-men were concerned. Like him, a lot of them had formed special connections with the team. 

"Cyclops, prepare the Blackbird III. We're going to go help them whether they like it or not. We'll use the tracking devises to find the base." ordered Xavier as he headed towards the plane. 

Most of the X-men were glad for this decision, a few were surprised he gave it. It didn't matter. Their friends were in trouble, and they were finally going to do something about it. Xavier just prayed that he hadn't made the decision too late. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

As the X-men rode towards their friends, Remy pulled a sheet of looseleaf out of his pocket. The hastily scribbled note brought a smile to his face. 

_//Remy, _

I'm sorry I couldn't tell you this to your face, but I knew that if I did, you wouldn't let me go, and I'd probably let you make me stay. Now I know how all those warriors who left their loves behind felt. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to write. I guess I really want to tell you that I love you, and I'm so glad I met you. You have made me a better person. I can't remember the last time I've felt this loved. 

I'm off to go fight Sinister now, and I know I may not come back. But I can honestly say that if I don't, this time with you has made my life worth it all. I'll always remember you, and I want you to remember me as well. That's why I want you to keep my ring. You know, the turquoise one that I always wear on my first finger. I saw you eyeing it, and I want you to keep it to remember me by. Hopefully you have as many good memories as I do of my time here. Amanda's calling, so I have to go, but I just wanted to tell you that, well, I love you. 

Leilee// 

**_~Anon's Cave~_**

Leilee struggled and finally broke the hold Anon had on her. She started to run across the floor to the exit, but before she could reach it, the cave ceiling collapsed on her. 

**Leilee**

**_~SINISTER'S ISLAND, COURTYARD~_**

"You have only two choices, and that is to help us or you are going to die with us. Which do you choose?" Sammi repeated. 

"Hmmm!? Let me think...I think...I think we should all die together like one big happy family." 

Arac smiles a cruel smile, as he place both hands palms down upon the concrete floor...a pink glow spreads outwards, enveloping ground and wall, until all is covered in an eerie light. The glow spreads out beyond the boundaries of the maze and base, until it envelops the entire island. Cara bursts into the room, and knows what Arac is up to. 

/This is not good. Cara, is there anyway for you to stop this wakko?/ 

Cara doesn't say anything as she concentrates on taking the energy into herself and interrupting it's flow. 

"I think we need to find Gateway. He's gotta be here somewhere." 

"I'll Hold him, while you guys locate Gateway...just hurry, okay?" Cara says, as she concentrates everything she has into keeping the explosive energy at bay. 

Amanda begins to issue orders. **Alright tp's link up. Jedi, scan tunnel#1. Dragon...Fire Fox, you guys scan tunnel#2. And I'll take door number 3.** 

As Maria and Teb started running for one of the tunnels, Cara was hit by a wave of desperate emotions. They were coming in the direction of the tunnel that she had just left. 

"Sammi!" cried Cara, "It's Leilee...she's trapped in the tunnel...Over there!" 

Cara didn't have to say anything more...Sammi took off running for the tunnel. She got there just as Hope and Solitaire were coming out of it. "You two, you're with me...hurry!" she shouted to them. 

Without a word, Hope and Solitaire ran after Sammi, through the wreckage of the tunnel. Cara was left face to face with her alternate self...who was grinning evilly from ear to ear. 

"You don't really think that you can win, do you?" he said. 

"All I need is to slow you down." 

/You guys better hurry up!/ 

**Chaos and Rainfall**

Sammi, Hope and Solitaire made their way down the hall. 

"In here!" Sammi yelled as she caught Leilee's scent. They all quickly began moving the debris away. Sammi grabbed a huge piece of the ceiling and started to lift it. 

"Guys, over here!" She yelled. 

The three of them lifted the debris and moved it over to the side. Sammi grabbed Leilee and they all ran back to where they came from. 

When they got there, they saw Arac and Cara. Arac was taunting her as she tried to take the energy into herself. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

On the plane, Logan was looking out the window nervously. /Hold on, darlin'. I'm coming./ He thought. 

As he thought about Sammi, he remembered the envelope that he found in his room just before they were leaving. He quickly grabbed it and stuffed it in his pocket. He slowly took it out now. 

Logan looked at it like it was going to bite him. He ran his thumb over the writing on the front, all it said was; DAD. But to him, that one short word meant a lot. He slowly opened it and took out the paper that was inside. As he opened the paper, a small object fell out and into his lap. He decided to read the letter first. 

_// Dear Dad, _

You can't imagine what it feels like to be able to write that. I love it. Anyway, I'm writing you this because I know you don't do goodbyes, and neither do I. So I'm writing this so, I don't have to say it out loud, 'cause you know then it isn't true. I know that's a bit delusional, but It gets me by. 

I don't know if I'll be back, even if we do defeat Sinister. But I wanted you to know that I'm glad I found my father, and I'm really glad it's you. I know all about you, and I know that even though you hide it, you have a really big heart. I'm glad that you let me see a little of it before we left. 

Do me a favor? Don't hide it, too much. One thing that my life has taught me is that every moment is precious, and it shouldn't be wasted. I know you live for the moment, but don't forget the ones around you. I just hope that I made you proud of me. Like Father, Like Daughter. I don't know if you noticed but I'm a lot like you. Mostly in the temper, but in other ways, too. 

I have to stop writing now, or I'm going to cry, again. Believe me... ever since I landed here, I've cried more than in my life. 

Let's see, there were some things I wanted to tell you. Watch out for Jubilee, she's like us. Tough as nails on the outside, but on the inside, she's very scared and one too many can break her. Let her know where she stands. 'Cause even though she won't admit it, she feels threatened by Kitty. 

Oh, yeah, I've been meaning to yell at you for this. HOW THE HELL COULD YOU MARRY VIPER??!!?? 

Well, I have to go. Tell Jubilee, that no matter what I'll always be her big sister and that I love her. I love you, too. 

Also, a really good prank to get back at Bobby is to first saran wrap his toilet seat. Then while he's sleeping, first dip one hand in warm water and put toothpaste in the other. When he wakes up, that's when the fun begins. And trust me, NO ONE will ever think it was you. 

Love Always, Your Daughter,  
Samantha 

P.S. Don't hurt Ice Pop, too bad, when you see your jeep, I helped him. 

Oh, one more thing, I left my necklace for you. The pendant is the Celtic symbol for Eternal Life. I hope you will wear it always, and remember me.// 

Wolverine read the letter over again and turned and looked at Bobby. Bobby was looking out the window. Wolverine grinned wickedly and place the necklace around his neck. He touched the pendant and thought, /I could never forget you, daughter./ 

**jubilee_79**

**_~X-MANSION~_**

Jamie Madrox, otherwise known as Multiple Man, walked silently back to his room. Professor Xavier had asked him to remain at the mansion while the others attempted a rescue party. He solemnly opened the door of his room, walked over to his bed and sat down. 

Something bounced off of his pillow, and rolled across the bed into his leg. He reached for the object without looking at it. It was round and hard, and had some paper wrapped around it. Jamie looked at it then, as he picked up the object. It was a softball, wrapped up in a note. 

Jamie unwrapped the note and read it...the simple sentence brought a smile to his face. It read... 

_//I call dibs on the "Me's", You have to be the "You's", Big Brother...//_

/Kid's got spunk...have to give her that. Cara, you better make it out of there.../ Jamie thought. 

He covered his eyes with one hand, as the ball slowly dropped out of his other hand, and rolled under the bed. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Beast paced in the medlab...walking back and forth between tables, beds and counters. He couldn't focus on any task, and he just wished that the Professor had allowed him to go with the others. Beast sighed, then walked over and sat down at his desk. He noticed that one of his books of poetry was lying off to the side. 

/That's odd,/ he thought to himself, /I'm sure I lent that to Cara...she must have brought it back before she left with the others./ 

Hank picked up the book, and a note fell out of it. He picked it up and read, 

_//Hey, Hank...I'm sorry that we didn't get a chance to talk... I wanted to tell you that Hope really likes you. I think you two make a cute couple. I hope things work out for the better. Also, I wanted to tell you thank you. I marked a poem in your book, which tells how I feel. Please read it. _

Your loving "Niece",  
Cara// 

Hank opened the book to the marked passage, and began to read. 

"Accept My Full Heart's Thanks--by Ella Wheeler Wilcox." 

"Your words came just when needed.  
Like a breeze,  
Blowing and bringing from the wide salt sea  
Some cooling spray, to meadow scorched with heat  
And choked with dust and clouds of sifted sand  
That hateful whirlwinds, envious of its bloom,  
Had tossed upon it. But the cool sea breeze  
Came laden with the odors of the sea  
And damp with spray, that laid the dust and sand  
And brought new life and strength to blade and bloom  
So words of thine came over miles to me,  
Fresh from the mighty sea, a true friend's heart,  
And brought me hope and strength, and swept away  
The dusty webs that human spiders spun  
Across my path. Friend--and the word means so much--  
So few there are who reach like thee, a hand  
Up over all the barking curs of spite  
And give the clasp, when most its need is felt,  
Friend, newly found, accept my full heart's thanks." 

Beast smiled as he finished reading the passage, and he settled back in his chair. He picked up the silk scarf that he had received from Hope in their dream, and fingered the delicate initials that were set in one corner. He gently folded the scarf, and placed it in the pocket of his lab coat. He too hoped that things would work out for the better. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Storm rode silently in the Blackbird III, she only hoped that they would reach their destination in time. She looked quizzically once more at the object she held in her hands... a small, delicate golden rose pendant on a fine gold chain. In one of the delicate petals, was a single, crystal teardrop. It was the necklace belonging to the girl known as Cara. 

/Why on earth would the child leave the necklace with me? We never really had a chance to speak with each other, and I know how much this meant to her... she never took it off... so why would she leave it with me?/ Storm wondered to herself. 

Storm once more read the note that she had found with the necklace. 

_//Storm, I know that you are probably wondering why I left this with you, since we never really spoke with each other. I will do my best to explain... but I only have a few brief moments. _

I have always had a great respect for you, and for your gift. Please, do not ever see it as anything else but a gift. I know there people and events in your past that would have you believing otherwise, but they are wrong. You are in tune with the earth, sky, and all creation within, on a level which most people cannot begin to comprehend. It is truly a marvelous gift. 

You have a genuine love and respect for nature...and it shows in the work you do in your garden. I've seen you as you work, and it brings back such wonderful memories of my mother. She also has a garden...more than twenty rosebushes and countless other flowers decorate our yard back home. While I was here, I became homesick, but I felt closer to home when I was out in your garden. 

I have always had a great respect for storms... for their nourishment, replenishment, and renewing of the earth, and all creation that it holds. I know there are those who see rain as something sorrowful, as if the sky were crying. But I see the rain in a different light. Rain isn't sorrowful for me... for me, it has always meant healing and nourishment, a new beginning. 

I don't have time to go into detail of why I feel this way...Amanda is calling me. But, this necklace was a reminder to me, of the healing powers of rain... I guess I hoped that it would do the same for you. Just please remember what a gift you have... and the happiness you and your gift bring to others. You are truly a remarkable person... and I will always think of you as my sister. 

Cara// 

Storm put the note down, and silently unhooked the chain. She brought it around her neck and re-clasped it, then stared silently at the rose as it rested in the palm of her hand. She watched as the single crystal teardrop glittered in the last rays of the setting sun. 

**Rainfall**

**_~SINISTER'S ISLAND, COURTYARD~_**

"NOOO!" Ryan screamed as her body regained consciousness. 

She gasped for air and let the spasms in her body subside. When Ryan turned her head, she saw it. The charred remains of the man she once loved. The remains of the man who tried to kill her. She pushed herself to her feet and surveyed the room. She saw various members of her team fighting Sinister's goons. She also saw Arac and Cara fighting. 

"Well the little protégé has finally returned." 

Ryan turned around and saw Mystique behind her. "You are one of the most annoying women I have ever met." Ryan said as she thought of what to morph into. 

"And you're a whiner, so let's get on with it." Mystique morphed herself in to a replica of Sabretooth. "How about it frail, you wanna play?" 

Ryan just smiled and morphed herself into a replica of that Vampire Demon from the movie "Dracula". She opened her mouth as flames came out and shot towards Mystique. "Let's go," she said. 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Athena was aware of a terrible burning sensation near her left temple. She could not force her eyes open, she couldn't move. She could only lie there with her own thoughts, her own guilt. She had failed her friends. She couldn't leave it at that. She felt her heart start to quicken and her body start to grow warm. There had to be something she could do. 

She realized she was absorbing heat through the floor of the cave. An idea formed in her head. She knew that her friends had private battles to wage against personal enemies. She didn't want to stand in the way of that. However, she knew that Sinister's hired henchmen were slowing things, providing distraction. She guessed that was what Sinister wanted. She thought she might still be able to help with that. 

Focusing all of her mind, she continued to absorb heat. What she couldn't see was that the cave and tunnels around her were slowly starting to freeze. She could feel the energy surge throughout her body. She had never felt the rush of so much power before. Just when she thought she could absorb no more, she concentrated one last time. 

A ball of fire erupted, flooding through the tunnels. It pummeled everything in its wake, leaving only charred caverns and ash. Athena sighed and allowed consciousness to slip away from her, knowing that her friends would now be free to concentrate on the more important part of their mission. 

She was confident that they could handle Sinister, Anon, Arac and Mystique without the distraction of incidental henchmen. She knew she had finally done something important. Maybe she had finally earned her place on the team. 

**flame**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Mystique growled, lunging at Mirage. Slashing at the Vampire Demon with everything she has, avoiding the flames shooting from the creature's mouth. 

"I wonder if ya really learned anything, frail. It's gonna be real fun to gut ya and see what yer insides look like." 

Mirage sneers as her mouth elongates more, producing several hundred rows of retractable teeth. Her size had also now doubled as her talons clawed down Mystique's back. 

"AAAAAIIIIIIIEEEEEEEE!!!!" 

"What's wrong _Mistake_, are you spineless? I wonder how much of your body you can morph and heal at a time, hmmm?" With that Mirage strikes, just as Mystique's claws dig into her right thigh. Mirage stumbles back and smiles with a mouth of one hundred dagger-like teeth. 

"What are you smiling at, frail?" 

"I just realized..." Ryan opens her hand as she morphs back into a diamond hard version of her true form. "...you have no heart for this fight." 

Ryan opens her hand to reveal Mystique's still beating heart. Mystique screams and Ryan shoves it back down her throat. 

"STOP being a baby, yer a shape shifter... it'll grow back." She laughs as Mystique drops to the ground from shock. 

**Chaos and Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hope stares in horror as she sees Solitaire fall to the ground, hit by one of the shots from one of Sinister's minions. 

"Solitaire!!! No!!!!"She screams as she kneels down by Solitaire's side. 

She pulls Solitaire close to her, crying as Solitaire unleashes her attack taking out Sinister's henchmen, a shield enveloping Hope and Solitaire as the attack takes place. Hope watches, feeling helpless as Solitaire slips into unconsciousness, giving of her all to help her teammates. 

Hope remembers the kindness that Solitaire and Bobby had given to her when she briefly woke up for a short moment to help give her team mates some hope. And her blacking out after her effort. 

"Oh Athena.. I wish I had the chance to get to know you better...oh please don't leave.... but I don't know if you want to stay... you probably don't." 

Hope looks over at the rest of the team then a glowing light surrounds her and Solitaire. Hope and Solitaire fades from view, leaving the rest of Vision X to finish the show-down. 

"Take advantage of Solitaire's gift to you." Hope says as they disappear. 

**Dreamweaver**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jamar senses what's happening to the others and winces. 

"I don't think we're gonna make it outta here. If we are, it's gonna have to be soon." 

"Come now, Mr. Alexander. You don't think I'd squander all of these resources toying with you and your friends if I thought you couldn't handle yourselves." 

Jamar turns to view Sinister. "You bastard. This is just one big game to you, isn't it!?" 

"It's hardly a game. I intend to push you all to your limits. I hate to quote an old friend, but for this to work, the fittest must survive." 

"ARRRRRAAAAAAAUGH!" Jedi's eyes flare as he sends his flaming scythe spinning through Sinister's side, only to have him heal back up. 

"That was pointless. You should be better than this, young Jedi. To me, you are merely a lost and misguided child." 

"What have you done with Gateway?" 

This only elicits a cocky smirk from Sinister. 

/Wait a minute... if Sinister walked up to me I would have sensed him. So he must have ported in./ His thoughts are interrupted by a blast of energy that burns away the side of Jamar's uniform, wounding him. 

**Sammi!?** 

/What is it Jamar?/ 

**I've found Sinney.** 

/Where?/ A portal opens and Sammi rushes through, rolling to the side as a blast of energy erupts from Sinister's hand. Surveying the area she sees Jamar crouching to the side of the tunnel, holding his ribs. 

/Are you okay?/ 

**I will be, once my ribs heal. Right now I need to find Gateway. Amanda...Jonas...Sammi, I need your help.** 

"Mind-to-Mind." Jamar says through gritted teeth as he uses everyone's telepathic skill to scan the entire building. /The whole compound has psi dampeners on the outside, but the only place he could keep Gateway is a place that negates his abilities./ As his search continues, he comes across a dead zone in the southwestern corner of the island. 

"Gotcha! See ya, Sinny!" Jedi says as he ports away. Sinister begins to move toward the point where he ported in, when he receives a gut full of adamantium for his troubles. 

"I know you can regenerate, but let's see how fast you can. RAAAAAAAHHGGGRRRRRRA!" She screams as the animal takes over, and she begins to flay Sinister alive. 

**_~Southwestern Corner~_**

A portal opens and Jedi falls through to the floor exhausted. He lays there for several minutes. 

**Jamar!...Jamar, GET UP!/ Amanda sends to him, urging him forward. 

/Aye Aye, Captain./ He replies back with a strained smile. 

Scrambling off of the floor, he walks over to the shielded room he'd sensed, and proceeds to rip the door from it's hinges. But he only succeeds in weakening it just enough for him to telepathically call Gateway. 

In a flash they are both in the central courtyard, as are Sammi and Sinny. It seems all she did was slow him down, because he had healed the wounds from which he'd sustained earlier. 

"Thank you, Samantha. It was a learning experience. I myself didn't realize how fast I could regenerate until put to the test. I must regrettably decline the offer of you to rearrange my vital organs. This little episode is at an end." 

Amanda uses her telepathic powers to be heard above the din of battle. 

"SINISTER! IT APPEARS WE HAVE A STALEMATE." 

The two leaders of the opposing forces surveyed the area around them. Craters potmarked the walls which were still glowing an eerie pink, soldiers trained their weapons on vis-x members, vis-x members had some soldier's bleeding and held by the throat. Another voice interrupts them all as they turn to regard it. 

"YOU PEOPLE HAVE FORGOTTEN SOMETHING. YOU ARE IN NO POSITION TO NEGOTIATE ANYTHING! AS WE SPEAK, THE WHOLE ISLAND HAS BEEN COVERED! NO ONE IS GOING ANYWHERE!" Arac shouted. 

Cara looks into the eyes of Amanda and Jamar as Sinny steps over to Gateway. Cara closes her eyes as the light from the island burns with bright, hot pink light. There are a series of flashes. 

**_~BLACKBIRD III~_**

"My stars and garters!" 

"What the hell is it?" Some of the X-men reply with awe as the pink light blinds them and there is a flash... then NOTHING. No island... just a boiling and smoking hole in the sea. 

**Chaos**

**_~Xavier's Study~_**

Xavier looked at the ocean and felt a great wave of silence descend over the blackbird III. They had arrived toO late to save them. They were gone. Various X-men were suffering through the shock. Xavier could only reach into his pocket to read the note she had left him. 

_Dear Charles, _

You will probably look at this letter when you realize that we are gone. I don't know if what ever you saw actual destroyed us, or if it just sent us home. Either way, we will never see each other again. 

Or will we? Some believe that life is nothing but a journey. That we all go through stages like a butterfly. That the end of one life is the beginning of another. I don't know. I do know that great friendship doesn't go away. I have a feeling we will meet again, someday. Continue fighting for your dream and never give up. There are those out there who believe in you all. 

Love,  
Amanda 

**A.C.**


	33. Reality Bites-Part 33, Epilogue

Disclaimer: All Marvel Characters are owned by Marvel Comics. All non-Marvel characters are owned by the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story. 

**

Reality Bites--Part 33, Epilogue

**

**_~XAVIER'S STUDY, (one month later)~_**

Xavier leaned back, letting his mind drift through the mansion's interior. Dark emotions colored the walls, permeating it with the stench of sorrow, regret, and guilt. It had been a month since the loss of Vision X. The memorial service had been one to remember, as members of every X-group as well as Spidey, The Avengers, and the Fantastic Four had come to pay their respects. 

Even the knowledge that someone else shared in the pain they were feeling still did nothing to fill the void within their hearts. Gen X had been here the better part of a month. Emma and Sean had felt it best for them to be here for counseling, plus Wolverine really needed Jubilee right now. 

/I still can't believe she's gone…that they're gone./ _Knock! Knock!_ The sound of the door draws Xavier out of his reverie as Jean enters. 

"Are you okay Professor?" Jean asks with a worried expression on her face. The fact that Jean noticed his pain tells Xavier that he has been projecting, something that hasn't happened by accident in a very, very long time. 

"I'm fine Jean. Thank You. Although, the others could benefit from some form of stimulation... maybe we should schedule extra training sessions. A dose of relative normality will be good for us." 

**WILL ALL X-MEN AS WELL AS GEN-X PLEASE REPORT TO THE DANGER ROOM IMMEDIATELY!** 

**_~Danger Room~_**

As the members of the X-men and Gen X entered the Danger Room, an eerie purple light spread throughout the room, before ending at the control room. 

"What was that all about?" Iceman asks. 

"I'm not certain... but I shall endeavor to find out, my most frosty compatriot." 

{{DRAKE…ROBERT…. DESIGNATE: ICEMAN-psi print confirmed}} 

{{MC COY…HENRY…. DESIGNATE: BEAST-psi print confirmed}} 

{{LEBEAU…REMY…. DESIGNATE: GAMBIT-psi print confirmed}} 

{{ESPINOSA…ANGELO… DESIGNATE: SKIN-psi print confirmed}} 

{{LOGAN…. DESIGNATE: WOLVERINE-psi print confirmed}} 

{{XAVIER…CHARLES F. …. DESIGNATE: PROFESSOR X-psi print confirmed}} 

{{PROGRAM CODE LOCK DISENGAGED-RUNNING PROGRAM}} 

The room did not change. They all looked around, confused but alert, waiting for an unseen attack. Wolverine is the first to notice a black robed figure just appear out of static. 

Wolverine steps forward and growls "Who are you, bub?" 

The figure removes his hood, and they all stare in shock at a holographic representation of Jamar. 

"If you guys are seeing this, one of two things has happened. We got transported home, or we've been blasted to oblivion by Sinney and his goons." He smiles, giving them all that familiar lopsided grin of his. 

"Don't you think that was a bit dramatic, Jedi?" They all turn at the voice to see Amanda and the other members of Vision X. 

"Hey, it's the truth." He turns towards Amanda. "But anyway. We have each left a personal message for several of you in the Danger Room's computer system. They will upload for each specific individual, except there's one catch... they can only be accessed by giving the computer the proper pass code." Jamar's smile turns to one of evil glee as he imagines their expressions. 

"That's really twisted kid." Wolverine says offhandedly. The hologram turns to regard him before replying, "DON'T CALL ME KID!!!" 

"Whoa, dude!" Jubilee mutters under her breath. 

"Charles." 

Xavier lifts his head and makes eye contact with the hologram of Amanda. 

"Do not grieve so. No matter what may have happened, we are okay now. Do not wallow in sorrow. You should be spending your time figuring out what the pass code I set up for you is." She says as she giggles. "Just think of this as a way for all of you to take your mind off your grief." 

"So while you think on what Amanda said, how 'bout I take you back to yesteryear. Computer, activate VXMWW interactive." 

The room ripples, changing into a scene that's vaguely familiar. Water balloons drop on the unsuspecting occupants of the Danger Room except for Wolverine, who has disappeared. 

**_~Beside the Boathouse~_**

Wolverine drops from the sky and into the lake. Wolverine pulls himself out. As he steps on dry land, three members of Vision X meet him. Each flips over a card. 

[Card#1: 9.5] 

[Card#2: 9.5] 

[Card#3: 5.5] 

Hope drops her card and walks over to Wolverine. "Mr. Logan choose your weapon." She says as she holds up a water cannon and a Supersoaker. 

He takes one and she disappears. 

**CHAOS**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Sammi was the next to drop her card. She held a water cannon in her hands and said," I never got the chance before." She squeezed the trigger, and Wolverine was hit with a blast of water. 

Sammi was laughing as she said," Don't forget... after everything is said and done, you still have to figure out the pass code, dad." She smiled sweetly and continued,"Oh, one more thing. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi! You're my only hope!" She started laughing again and said, "I always wanted to do that." And then she faded away. 

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Jubilee was looking around at everyone and she felt a little left out. Then a holographic image of Sammi appeared in front of her. 

"Sammi?" Jubilee asked. 

"That's right, sis. Don't think I forgot about you." Sammi smiled as a huge water balloon fell from the ceiling and landed on Jubilee's head. 

"You also have to figure out a pass code, sis. I'll see you then." Sammi said as she faded away. 

**jubilee_79**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Wolverine sat in the danger room trying to think of the pass code Sammi would have chosen for him. An image of Ryan appeared before him. 

"Logan I have a message for you too. You have to guess the pass code before you get it, though." 

Logan smiled and thought. "Scooby," He said plain and simple. 

"Am I that obvious? I just wanted to ask you a favor. You have dealt with your feral nature for so long, and have succeeded in controlling it. Victor has never been able to do that until I came into his life. Could you please help him with it, now that I'm gone? You're the only one who I think can. I know you hate him and you have good reason to. He really isn't such a bad guy. Please?" With that the image cut off and Ryan disappeared. 

Logan thought for a moment on how that girl had brought out the man in Creed. She was the only one who kept the animal in him at bay. After the island blew up, everyone presumed that Creed died in the explosion. At least he died a man and not a monster, Logan thought. 

"Nope Darlin', he ain't such a bad guy after all… at least not with you." 

**Le Fae**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Bobby knew immediately what his pass code would be. He looked at the image of Athena standing before him and said, "Queen of Hearts." 

The likeness of Athena smiled at him. It moved closer to him and whispered something to him. Athena's message was personal, between her and Bobby. She didn't want anyone else to hear. The image of Athena vanished and Bobby was left standing alone. 

He seemed stunned at first, almost disbelieving. Then the look of shock gave way to a smile. He left the danger room smiling, with a tiny tear frozen on his cheek. 

**flame**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Logan went to his room to try and figure out what the pass code could be. He walked over to the dresser and looked at the photo he took of Jamar and Sammi. It was now in a frame, thanks to Jubilee. He stood staring at the photo remembering everything that happened before it. He remembered Sammi saying, "If he my brother and your my father, then he's your son by default." 

Then it came to him. "Family." 

"Geez, It took you long enough." A voice said from behind him. He knew it and smiled as he turned and said,"Well, I'm an old man. Stuff takes longer to sink in, darlin'." 

"It's not because you're old. It's because you have such a thick head." Sammi said as she smiled and continued. "Just like me." 

She motioned to the bed and he sat down. Her image sat down next to him and said, "I know I wrote you the letter, but some things are better said in person. I love you, and no matter what, I always will. I hope I made you proud." 

"You always do. I love you too." He said as the image disappeared. 

**_~Jubilee's Room~_**

Jubilee lay on her old bed and looked at the ceiling, remembering the night of the pool party. She suddenly remembered Sammi saying, "No matter what, I'll always be your Big sister." 

Jubile sat bolt up right and said, "Sisters." 

Sammi's image appeared at the foot of her bed, and said, "See, you can figure out anything." The image smiled and continued. "I just wanted to give you some sisterly advice. First, Don't ever feel threatened by Kitty. Dad has a lot of love, but it's just hard for him to show it sometimes. And second, when Monet pulls her 'Miss Perfect Priss' 'tude, just say, "You're not that perfect, you could never survive Half the stuff I did." And believe me, she will back down. You're a survivor, and I know that one day you'll be the one leading." Sammi smiled again as her image disappeared. 

Jubilee leaned back on her bed and said, "Maybe it's time I showed everyone what I really can do." She smiled as she looked at the Black Leather Jacket that she bought Sammi at the mall. "Thanks, sis." 

**Jubilee_79**

**_~Wolverine's Room~_**

"That was touching. You learn fast, young padawan." said the voice of Jamar. 

"I didn't think you'd be coming around." 

"Well, that family thick-headedness can only stretch so far." Jamar jokes before once again becoming serious. "Before coming here, Sammi and I could count close family on one hand. Now we know that we have a family out there. I know things were a bit strained between us ,and I regret we didn't pitch around the ole baseball...or at least sparred once or twice." 

"It's okay kid..." 

"How many times must I tell you... don't call me kid." Logan begins to chuckle. "If you wish to call me something, call me son... because I'd be honored to call you father." 

Jamar disappears just like his sister, leaving a very misty eyed Logan sitting alone on the bed. 

**Chaos**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Xavier smiled as he could sense that the messages were helping the various X-men deal with their lost. He knew that this was the best gift they could have left the X-men. Like Sammi said, some things need to be said in person. 

Charles knew the password, but declined to use it. A part of him knew that he would find Amanda again. She was his soul mate. He pulled out her letter to read the last part one more time. It was his favorite part. 

_P.S.  
I will always love you no matter what keeps us apart. _

P.S.S.  
Lighten up, Charlie 

Charles laughed out loud until Scott came in to see if he was all right. 

**A.C.**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Remy stood there, still racking his brain his brain for the password. He looked down, and notice something on his hand. The ring she had given him. "Turquoise." 

Leilee popped up in front of him. "Hey, Baby. Miss me?" 

Remy grinned. "Always, Ma cherie." 

"Good. Because I'll be back to see you. You know me. I'm like a bad penny. Except for the bad part. I always turn up again. I love you." she smiled and kissed his cheek before fading away. 

**Leilee**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Hank hurt. He had never hurt this badly in his life. While the others stood trying to figure out their messages, he felt lost. how could his beautiful shining lady been taken from him? 

A shimmer of light flashed brightly in front of his eyes, and Hope stood before him. 

"Do not grieve, my love. Remember what I have taught you," She smiled so sweetly that it broke his heart anew. Then, she was gone. 

"Hope," He cried out hoarsely. 

All around him the view changed, and he found himself standing in the same glade that he first met Hope in. She stood a few feet away, brilliantly shining in her silver and white. 

"Hank," she called to him. "I will always be near my love, only a dream away. We will see each other again. I want you to know that I Love you dearly. Should the gods see fit to give us time together again, I shall not choose to leave your side again till you no longer want me. Hold me one last time and carry that with you to your dreams." 

Hank enveloped her in his arms and held her as tightly as he could. 

**Lady_Yann**

**_~*~*~*~*~*~_**

Just then, an alarm blared throughout the mansion. Everyone looked up from what they were doing, and wondered what was going on. 

The alarm was cut short, followed by an unmistakable impish laugh. It was Cara's. 

"Sorry to 'alarm' you, but I had to get your attention. My goodbye is for everyone, I set up a special program in the Danger Room...I'd appreciate it if you all would gather there. Thanks." the recorded message ended. 

All of the members of X-Men, Generation-X, and everyone else stopped what they were doing, and went to the Danger Room one last time. When everyone was there, the figures of Cara, Athena and Hope all appeared in the middle of the room, as well as a piano. 

"Most of you don't know it, but I am a composer...and I've written a little song for you, which Athena and Hope are going to sing. I will be accompanying them on the piano." said Cara. 

She seated herself at the piano, went through the intro and nodded at the two girls. They began to sing. 

_"Remember how things used to be.  
Remember how we laughed.  
Time stood still, we used to dream,  
that time would never pass away,  
things would never change. _

But time went on, and we moved on,  
Forging seperate paths.  
The life we shared, was left behind,  
but lives on in dreams. 

For time will bring sweet memories,  
and we'll remember, how we used to laugh." 

They finished, and the room was quiet. Cara stood up from the piano, and faced the room. 

"If you are viewing this, it means that we probably didn't make it back." 

Cara sighed, and looked around her. All of the other members of Team Vision-X appeared around Cara, and they were all smiling too. Cara looked at Amanda, who nodded to her, then Cara looked once more at the room's inhabitants. 

"Do not grieve for us," she said, "for we will always be with you, only a dream away." 

Then the members of Vision-X, faded into the background. 

_A/N: I really did write that song. Please don't use it without permission. It and other songs can be found at fanfiction.net under my alter-ego, Rae Street._

**Rainfall**

**_~In Our World~_**

Amanda awoke from the strangest dream she had ever had. She had dreamt that she had meet the X-men and had powers, and had fought Sinister. It had seemed so real, that a part of her believed it had happened. 

"I've gotta stop reading fanfics at night. I also must be too hyped up about seeing the movie." 

Amanda went to the computer and went onto The Wolverine and Jubilee Storyboard. She thought about starting a new story. I wonder if I could use my dream for an idea, she thought. 

Slowly she began to type the first part of her dream down before she forgot it. 

"I hope someone likes this story." she stated as she hit submit. 

**A.C.**

**~The End _(or is it?)_~**

Notes: Well folks, We made it! Reality Bites is now complete! And all of us authors would just like to take the chance to thank you for your kind words and encouragement. And don't worry, the fun's not over yet. Be sure to stay tuned for our sequel, Welcome to Reality! :-) 


End file.
